The Girl From Shiketsu
by EmeraldNorth
Summary: Todoroki never expected high school to be easy, but having a seatmate who constantly glared at you was not exactly what he had envisioned. Luckily, things start looking up when he forms a friendship with the black-haired girl he meets at the river bank every morning. [AU in which Momo attends Shiketsu High and Inasa Yoarashi attends U.A.; TodoMomo] [Hiatus bc caught up w/ manga]
1. Sunlight On Water

**AN: Since a reviewer pointed some of these things out, I decided to put up a list of liberties I'm taking regarding Shiketsu:**

 **\- Shiketsu is located in the far west of Musutafu, and not in the far west of Japan**

 **\- Camie Utsushimi, Nagamasa Moura and Seiji Shishikura are first-year-students**

 **\- There are limited scholarship slots for U.A, which leads to Momo attending another school**

 **\- We don't actually know that much about Shiketsu (yet), so I'm improvising most of the time. Bear with me, 'kay?**

* * *

 _ **The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ ** _ **I. Sunlight On Water**_**_

Students streamed into the looming building from all directions, chatting about their vacations and summer homework done last minute. If it were not for the imposing glass building in front of him, Todoroki would have dismissed it as a normal high school.

A student jovially greeted another one to his left, and they headed into the building in a chorus of laughter and jokes.

Todoroki averted his eyes. He wasn't here to make friends. He was here to study, and to show his bastard of a father that he would be a great hero without his help.

And he would do whatever it takes to make his point.

Subconsciously, his fingers tightened around the strap of his bag as he took a determined strides towards the large entrance.

The other students' laughter echoed around him until it drowned out in silence. He didn't have time to idly chat away.

His feet carried him up the stairs, to where he had memorized his classroom would be. He slid through the crowd of heroes-in-training effortlessly, ignoring the few curious glances that were thrown his way.

A few more metres, then around the corner… bingo.

The impossibly large door left quite an impression on him, and he wasn't quite sure what to think of it. Were there really heroes that needed doors this big?

Shaking his thoughts away, he pushed open the door and entered the room. It wasn't too different from his middle school classroom, except that it looked more… modern? Polished, perhaps?

A few of his apparent classmates were already inside, a minority of them locked in conversation. His eyes wandered across the small plaques placed on every desk, searching for the number 15.

He found it in the last row, and a small part of him was relieved he would have a semblance of solitude there.

The numbers 5 and 20 were on either side of his desk, but nobody as there yet. With a ghost-like presence, he crossed the classroom, taking a seat behind his appointed desk.

The classroom gradually grew louder as more students entered and began socializing, and at some point one boy made it a point to shout and scream at everybody who approached him.

Todoroki merely rested his hand on his palm and glanced out the window, not interested in his classmates' shenanigans. They were behaving like little children, and hardly the heroes they were training to be.

Was it too hard to ask for somebody who had an inkling of maturity?

Apparently, it was. The newest addition to the classroom, a loud-mouth who said something about hot-bloodedness, dragged out the chair next to his with a painful screech. Todoroki supressed a wince, but he glanced over at the imposing male next to him for just long enough to see the hateful glare he sent his way.

Todoroki tore his eyes away again, concentrating on a faraway cloud.

What had he done to deserve a look filled with that much rage?

* * *

High School was full of surprises.

Aside from the loudmouth next to him being a recommended student despite obviously being somewhat of an idiot, his other classmates were… how should he put this… peculiar.

Their first day started off with a physical test, along with a bluff from their teacher that left half of his fellow students shaking in fear of failing.

He didn't care much for them, since he knew he would pass without question. One of the boys was obviously having trouble with his quirk, but it was more of a mental side note in Todoroki's mind.

The other recommended student was what really caught his eye. When he opened his mouth, he was nothing more than a blubbering idiot, but his quirk was nothing to joke about. Strong gales of wind ravaged across the training field as he launched the ball with a wide grin on his face.

Todoroki found himself admitting that it was quite the destructive force, and if only its wielder was more intelligent, who knows how that power could be put into use.

Inasa Yoarashi.

Maybe he should take note of the name.

The day ended with Yoarashi sending another hate-filled glare towards him before leaving the school.

Todoroki also left the premises, heading home. He wasn't particularly fond of what was inevitably about to come. His father would ask him to report how his day was, along with a rundown of his classmates' quirks should there be anybody stronger than him.

He let out a soft sigh, instead watching the way the setting sun bathed the streets in a warm orange.

Orange, like his father's flames.

A riverbank to the side caught his eye, a relatively even, empty lot, shaded by the bridge passing over it.

An idea flitted into his mind. An idea that would kill more than two birds with one stone.

* * *

The conversation with his father was about as pleasant as he had imagined it. Enji Todoroki asked all kinds of questions, and all Todoroki could do was nod and answer the occasional 'yes or no' question, but it left him feeling exhausted and powerless, as it always did.

He slumped onto his futon, staring up at the wooden ceiling of his room.

He hated this life.

* * *

The next morning, right after his alarm clock rang, he got dressed and ate the breakfast his sister made before leaving for work.

He still had quite some time before school started, which was usually spent training in the dojo in his house, but he wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible.

He grabbed his bag and left the house as quietly as he could, hoping his father wouldn't realize. It wasn't as if he was going to ditch training, on the contrary, he was going to train harder than ever before. He just wasn't going to do it at home.

His feet lead him back to the riverbank in a light sprint, just as the sun peeked over the horizon. A quick glance at his watch told him that this was definitely something that could settle into a daily routine.

He put his bag and blazer on the ground under the bridge, making a mental note to maybe wear gym clothes the next time.

Nonetheless, he began with some basic stretches, absentmindedly watching the dew on the grass blades as they slowly began to catch the rising sun's rays.

"You're doing that wrong." A female voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts.

He lowered his arms and turned around, coming face to face with a black-haired girl who was probably out for a run, judging by her attire.

"I am?" He asked, a slight frown forming on his face. He could have easily dismissed her, but he wasn't going to be rude. She might have a valid point.

She nodded. "Yeah, you're only going to give yourself back problems if you keep on doing it like that. You should do it more in this angle."

She demonstrated it once for him, and with chagrin, he realized that she was right. He always associated those back pains with his harsh training regimen, but it was actually from doing the exercise wrong the entire time.

"Oh, thanks for pointing that out." He answered politely, copying the movement in its correct form. Yes, that definitely felt much better already.

"No problem, we fellow heroes-in-training have to help each other out, right?" She offered him a kind smile that he couldn't quite bring himself to return.

"How did you know?" He asked her instead, confusion washing over him.

She gestured at his clothes, and he realized that he was still wearing his uniform. "Oh, right, I forgot about that."

"Still, doesn't U.A. provide you with gym clothes? Your uniform isn't meant to do sports in." She remarked innocently.

"I'm aware of that." He answered quickly, hoping to preserve some of his dignity. "I was just in a hurry this morning. It slipped my mind."

She frowned and glanced at her wrist watch. "This early?"

"It's complicated."

"I see… Well, see you around, U.A.-student." She gave him a friendly wave before turning to continue with her run.

"Wait." His mouth spoke faster than his brain could think things through.

She turned back around to face him, a questioning look on her face. "Yes?"

"You said you're also a hero-in-training, right?"

A smile grew on her lips. "Yes, that's right."

"Which school do you attend?" He asked, curiosity getting the better of him. She obviously didn't attend U.A., not with the way she addressed him and his school.

Her smile grew even wider. "I'm a first-year at Shiketsu High."

* * *

 **AN: So, as you can see, this will have rather short chapters and will be more on the episodic side than being a linear story.**

 **Not quite sure where this is going yet... but leave a review if you liked it!**

 **~Emi**


	2. Clouds On The Horizon

_**The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **II. Clouds on the horizon**_

Todoroki's fingers tapped against the wooden desk in a monotone rhythm. This was much worse than he expected.

His eyes flitted across the classroom, taking in his classmates before they returned to the menial task of staring at his eraser.

His class was filled with idiots. From the ticking time bomb to the self-destructive moron, none of them seemed anywhere near becoming descent heroes.

While he was aware that technically, they were attending school for that exact purpose, he wasn't too sure how they were planning to evolve with their current mind sets.

Their teacher finally entered, speaking with the most demotivating voice he had ever heard. Mock battles, huh?

The mock battles didn't surprise him much, he had already assessed most of the abilities of his classmates the day before.

Perhaps the green-haired guy's stupid recklessness surprised him, but that was about it.

All Might, their teacher, asked the students for their assessment of the situation. Todoroki decided to keep quiet before he said something he couldn't take back later, but the same couldn't be said for the rest of 1-A.

Their empty eyes and faces screamed that they had no clue.

All Might sighed and began to give a rundown of the situation.

Todoroki glanced at the computer screen, looking at the mess the two boys had made of the building. While their powers were explosive, they were too wild. The potential was there, just not the thought process.

His battle was over in an instant, nobody harmed and nothing destroyed. Just like it should be. All Might praised him, but he was a bit unsure of how to deal with the positive feedback, so he only managed to nod politely.

* * *

His pen tapped against the table surface as he stared at the blank strip of paper in front of him. Class president? Who would he vote for as class president?

He glanced to his left. The guy who had an obvious grudge against him was out of the question. Somebody who couldn't keep a tab on their emotions was not suitable to be a leader.

He glanced to his right. The quiet guy who was always eating sweets. Somebody who couldn't open their mouth was just as unsuitable.

This was tedious.

With a reluctant sigh, he wrote his own name down. This round of voting was bound to be a mess anyways.

* * *

The next morning, he left his house at the same time as they day before. This time, he actually remembered to change into his gym clothes.

After dropping his bag into the dewy grass, he started his routine off by taking a deep breath and calming his soul and thoughts.

He spread his arms out to the side, widening his lung capacity, breathing out slowly and evenly. He began to repeat the process when he heard somebody approaching him from behind.

"It's good to see you're actually wearing the right kind of clothes today." The black-haired girl from the day before greeted him with a friendly smile.

He lowered his arms and turned around. "It's you." He remarked.

"Of course it's me. Who else would it be?" She giggled.

His mind wandered to Yoarashi. Would his seatmate really do something as underhanded as that? He shrugged in response.

She gave him a satisfied smile. "Thought so."

She was always smiling. It threw him off.

"Weren't you doing something?" He asked her, noting that she was still here. If she really came just to check whether he was wearing appropriate clothing, then she had already done so.

"I was out for a run, but it's never wrong to do a few interval stretches." She reached her arms towards the sky, going through some simple exercises. "Besides, doing this alone is boring. Having company is always nice."

"If you say so." His eyebrows pulled together slightly as he resumed his own set of stretches. She considered him worthwhile company?

Then she'd be one of a very small amount of people.

* * *

They were holding re-elections in class.

Izuku Midoriya. The self-destructive kid. Three votes from the day before. A stuttering mess at the front of the classroom.

Amongst his fragmented sentences, he tried to convey that he thought Tenya Iida would make a better class president than him.

Todoroki agreed. Tenya Iida could at least form coherent sentences in front of a crowd. It didn't change the fact that he was once again staring at a blank sheet of paper, tasked with writing down a name of somebody who'd be a good pick for vice class president.

Maybe a girl? Girls tended to be more responsible in their age group, if his sister was anything to go by.

The only problem was that there was hardly anything he knew about any of them.

He put his pen down, deciding not to write anything.

* * *

The grey clouds in the sky told him it'd be raining sometime during the day, so he made a mental note to take along an umbrella.

His jog down to the riverside was as uneventful as it was the past two days.

The grass was bit wetter than usual, probably due to it raining overnight. The air was slightly chilly, but it was nothing that couldn't be solved by a bit of exercise.

He hoped it wouldn't start raining again until he was done with his routine.

A small part of him wondered if that girl would come by again, since this seemed to be her usual jogging route. The dim sky would have put off any other person, giving them a good excuse to skip out on training for the day, but he would rather stand in the pouring rain than spend another minute under the same roof as his father.

With a deep breath, he shifted his centre of gravity and adjusted his stance, repeating the fluid movement one more time. It wasn't fluid enough yet.

The silence around gave him a good ground to work on, giving him the opportunity to shut out the outside world and focus on his rhythm of breathing and each muscle that tensed and relaxed with each movement.

Time passed steadily, and just as he was nearing the end of his regime, a cold sensation on his cheek interrupted his focus.

He blinked, and in that split second the rain poured down from out of nowhere.

Good thing he brought that umbrella. In a swift movement, he grabbed his bag and jacket, taking refuge under the bridge so that he could take out his umbrella in peace.

However, when he opened his bag, it wasn't there. He furrowed his eyebrows, digging through the in-betweens of his notebooks, but not finding it.

Did he actually manage to forget it?

A light chuckle made him look up. It was the girl, shielding herself with a large red umbrella.

"Is something amusing?" He frowned. What was she doing over here? Didn't she just stick to the road?

"No, it's just… you must've really been in a hurry to forget your umbrella." She tried to hide her laughter behind her palm, but it was to no use.

He sighed softly. "Usually I think about things like this. I could've sworn I put it in."

"Well, than I guess you're lucky I came by." Her smile grew across her cheeks, flashing perfect white teeth at him.

She held her umbrella out to him with a friendly expression, but he could only show scepticism.

"If I take this, what do you want in return?" He asked bluntly. There was no use talking around the bush.

Her smile fell, and she tilted her head to the side in what seemed like genuine confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't you want some sort of compensation for helping me out?" He reiterated carefully. His eyes fell to the red umbrella. "Besides, if I take this, won't you be stuck in this rain?"

"Well, is it wrong to just want to help someone out? I mean, we're both training to become heroes, right? So isn't the best place to start helping each other?" Her words were spoken with conviction, and in the back of his mind he remembered her saying something similar before.

It made him realize that he was doubting her merely because of his father's teachings and view on values.

"And about the rain, it's not a problem. I'll just make another one." She added cheerfully, interrupting his flow of thoughts.

"…make?" He repeated questioningly.

She nodded eagerly, pushing the handle of her umbrella into his hands. After a sharp inhale of breath she pulled out an identical one out of the skin of her palm.

"This is my quirk." She explained proudly, opening the fully functional umbrella. Then she glanced at her wrist-watch. "Oh dear, it looks like we'll both be late for school at this rate. See you!"

And just like that, she was gone again, a small dot of red running down the street, leaving him under the bridge with a bright red umbrella in his hands.

With a sigh, he opened it, picked up his belongings and headed towards his school. It was firm, made of good-quality material. He wondered exactly how her quirk worked.

As the rain pitter-pattered against the umbrella, he thought about what she said. Was it wrong to want to help someone out?

No, no it was not. In fact, it was the right thing to do. It was what heroes did.

His jaw clenched. She was becoming a hero for all the right reasons, but were his motives just as justifiable?

He wasn't sure.

* * *

 **AN: Todoroki's just socially awkward and not the best at trusting strangers. I don't really have anything else to say.**

 **Leave a review if you liked it, or not.**

 **~Emi**


	3. Foggy Mornings

_**The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **III. Foggy Mornings**_

Todoroki's eyes rested on her jet-black ponytail that swayed behind her in gentle motions while she arched her back.

"I don't think you've told me your name yet." He remarked.

Her soft hums stopped. "No, I haven't. How terribly rude of me." She turned around to face him and held out her hand, her ever-present smile resting on her lips.

"My name is Momo Yaoyorozu."

He wiped his sweaty palm on his shirt before taking her small hand into his and giving it a firm handshake. "Shouto Todoroki."

"Nice to meet you." She joked, her lips growing even wider.

It was weirdly infectious, and the corner of his lip tugged upwards, but not quite reaching a smile. "Same here."

* * *

In the blink of an eye, he was alone. He was being transported somewhere through this fuzzy purple tunnel, and he had no idea what was going on. He told himself that he had to get back to Thirteen and his classmates, but he could only guess where he would land.

Calming his nerves, he took a deep breath. Now was not the time to panic.

The fuzzy tunnel spit him out, and the moment he felt the solid ground beneath his feet, he activated his right side, freezing everything in the vicinity.

Moans were heard from the villains who were nothing more than statues at this point. Todoroki exhaled, creating a foggy cloud of breath.

That's right, there's no need to panic, just as there was no need for him to use his left side.

He subdued the group of villains without using any of the wretched powers his father gave him.

* * *

The next morning, she was late.

He wondered why he was expecting her to come by again, but a part of him still noted that she was late. He shooed that voice out of his head, focusing in his movements.

Just because he caught the villains off guard yesterday didn't mean they'd always stand around and wait for him.

He needed to continue expanding his reach and control, and prolong the amount of time his body could handle his quirk without hitting critical temperatures.

He needed to concentrate on his body, and how it reacted with the environment.

So why did he interrupt his routine when he heard the sound of shoes hitting gravel? He turned around to look for the source of the sound, wondering whether it would be a girl with a black ponytail.

And it was. Today she was already dressed in her school uniform though, and her usually cheerful face was replaced by a frown.

"Good morning, Todoroki." She greeted him with a small smile, but it didn't reach her charcoal eyes.

"Yaoyorozu." He greeted back with a slight nod of his head.

She took this as a signal to step into the dewy grass, carefully walking down the slight slope that led to the riverbank.

"How are doing?" She asked him, eyes trained on the passing stream of water.

"I'm fine. How about you?" He shrugged, considering asking what her unusual behaviour was about, but that question became redundant when she did finally did manage to look at him.

Her black eyes stared right at him, filled to the rim with uncertainty.

"I saw the news." She began talking. "About what happened at U.A. yesterday."

Oh. Right. He completely forgot that all sorts of reporters were all over them after they survived the villain assault thanks to All Might and the other teachers getting there in time.

Todoroki was unsure of how to respond, but thankfully Yaoyorozu continued talking before he had to come up with something.

"I kept wondering… whether that was your class. And then my mind kept asking itself questions, like what I would have done had I been in that situation." Her gaze sunk to her feet, where she began shuffling her weight from one side to the other.

"The Pro Heroes got there in time before things got out of hand." He answered after a few seconds of silence.

Yaoyorozu shook her head. "Doesn't it bother you that they got into your school grounds in the first place? Honestly, that's what scares me the most. Imagining a whole gang of villains showing up during practice hours, in a place we assume is safe…"

She brought her arms around her torso, hugging herself. "If the imagination is already that unsettling, I wonder what you and your classmates felt during the entirety of that fiasco…"

There was a question on the tip of his tongue, a question he dared not ask. It was too presumptuous. Instead, he stuffed his hands into his trouser pockets, not really knowing what to do with them. Of course the whole villain attack was unsettling, and his father already voiced his criticism towards the school security system, but he wasn't sure about talking to a student from another school regarding things like that.

"I think… you would've been able to handle yourself." He finally spoke, awkwardly attempting to comfort her somehow. Communication was not his forte.

She glanced up at him, then redirected her gaze back to the water. "Even though I'm flattered you think so highly of me, I'm afraid you're not really getting what I mean." She paused for a few seconds, just staring at the water. "This may sound a bit forward, but I would like to consider you a friend, Todoroki."

She stopped talking again, looking at him in search of a reaction. But considering how confused he felt about her words, he highly doubted she could read a lot into his reaction.

A friend? He wasn't sure what that was.

"Friends worry about each other." She went on, keeping her eyes in his direction. "And I can't help but worry about you."

He was pretty sure he was staring at her, but he seriously didn't know what to say in response. What does one normally say in a situation like this?

 _You don't need friends, Shouto._

No, that was his father's voice. That was what his father wanted.

He swallowed the clump in his throat. "Thank you." He finally opted to say.

* * *

 **AN: I warned you about slow and short updates.**

 **I haven't decided who the new vice-prez is yet, but I'll wing it until it actually becomes significant. If you guys have any good ideas, you can leave them here as well :)**

 **Reviews are always appreciated :)**

 **~Emi**


	4. Heatwaves

**AN: Hey, remember when some of you said you enjoyed the slow pacing of this story? Yeah? Well, I'm about to screw that pacing over.**

* * *

 _ **The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **IV. Heatwaves**_

" _I would like to consider you a friend, Todoroki."_

His father's fist landed square in his stomach, knocking him back a considerable bit. He brought his arm up in time to block the next strike, using the motion to try and counterattack, but his father saw through his tactic and redirected his fist with ease.

"You're too slow." His father remarked disapprovingly, shaking his head. "You need to react faster." The moment the last syllable left his mouth, Enji was back on the offensive, mercilessly attacking his son.

Todoroki stemmed himself against it, letting it slip off its intended path, this time sending a kick towards his father's legs.

"Still not good enough." His father's angry voice commented, turning the attack against him and flipping him over like a pancake.

Todoroki rasped for air after the heavy impact on the ground, but he was already used to the sensation.

"Fuyumi!" His father called for his sister, who rushed in with a tray holding glasses of water and towels.

Enji took a towel, wiping the sweat from his own forehead. "You better step up your game before the sports festival, Shouto." He said his final words to his son before disappearing into the hallway.

Todoroki, still lying on his back, merely sighed. The sports festival this, the sports festival that. Ever since Mister Aizawa announced it a few days ago, everybody's been completely gung-ho about it.

He pushed himself up into a sitting position, just in time to see his sister set the tray down next to him.

"Here, Shouto, have some water." She offered him a small smile, like she always did. Gratefully, he accepted the glass of water and downed it in one go. "Thanks, Fuyumi."

His sister grimaced in the corner of his eyes. "I wish I could do more for you. I wish… things didn't have to be like this." She admitted dejectedly.

Todoroki shook his head. He lost count of how many times he had this conversation with her already. "You're here, that's enough."

The sadness and self-blame still lingered in her eyes, even after she tried to blink it away. "Dinner's ready, if you want to eat."

He nodded. "Yes, that would be nice."

She picked up the tray again, and together they headed towards the kitchen.

"So, how's school?" She asked him, and he was grateful for the change of topic.

"Fine, I guess." He answered vaguely.

"That's good to hear." The relief was evident in her voice. "Have you made any friends yet?"

" _I would like to consider you a friend, Todoroki."_

Todoroki let the words replay in his head. Hesitantly, he took the words into his mouth.

"Yes, I have."

* * *

"Hahaha, I hope all of you pathetic losers are ready to bow down to me, the number one student of this class!"

Todoroki sighed, leaning his head further into the palm of his hand. He hadn't been to the river bank this morning, courtesy of his father insisting on supervising his morning training. He hoped Yaoyorozu didn't mind his absence.

Bakugou continued sputtering egomaniacal nonsense in the background, overpowering all the other chatter going on in the classroom.

"Especially you, worthless Deku!" The green-haired boy in question shrieked slightly at the mention of his name, jumping up in his chair. It was almost funny.

"Haha, what a hot-blooded fellow!" Yoarashi exclaimed positively from beside him. Todoroki frowned. The guy was actually a nice guy, sure, he was a complete idiot who was just s hot-headed as he was obsessed about hot-bloodedness, but he was actually a nice guy.

To everybody except Todoroki.

One time, when Yoarashi dropped an eraser and Todoroki picked it up for him, all he got was a cold glare in response. He just didn't get the guy.

"Yep, gotta agree with you there." Kirishima, another student from their class, responded to Yoarashi's statement. "But I'm quite pumped for the sports festival as well. You know, expectations of us are pretty high after we were all over the news because of the whole USJ thing."

"Ahhh, don't remind me." The pink-haired girl, Ashido, quipped in. "My first time on TV, and my hair was a complete mess!"

"Honestly, that can't be your biggest problem, right?" Another girl stepped into the conversation. If Todoroki remembered correctly, her name was Jirou. "I think you forgot that villains, actual villains, attacked a bunch of first-year students." The sarcasm in her voice was hard to ignore, well, unless you were the obvious idiot of a lightning bolt that was standing next to her.

"Oh come on, Jirou, I don't think Ashido would have forgotten something like that, right?"

The purple-haired girl sighed and shook her head, just as the pink-skinned girl laughed it off awkwardly.

Kirishima coughed, getting their attention. "That aside, what kind of challenges do you think they'll be giving us this year? I've watched the last few years of the U.A. sports festivals, but they're always different each year."

"I hope it's something that'll make all of our blood boil!" Yoarashi shouted vigorously, pumping one fist into the air.

"Pfft, it doesn't matter what the discipline will be, after all, I'll beat all of you useless wimps anyways." Bakugou drawled from his position on his desk, despite Iida's various reprimandations, feet slumped onto the table of the unfortunate student sitting in the seat behind his, this of course being a shivering Midoriya who was hiding behind his notebook.

Todoroki's lips thinned, and he briefly wondered whether he should do something. Say something. Help him out.

Luckily, in that moment, Mister Aizawa stepped, well, rather slouched through the door, marking the beginning of homeroom. Todoroki picked up a pencil and opened his notebook, concentrating on class.

There were more important things to think about than his classmate's welfare. That's what he told himself, but his eyes flitted to the left on their own volition.

Izuku Midoriya, the one with the wild, but highly destructive quirk.

* * *

"Long time no see." There was a cheerful quip to her voice, and his mood instantly brightened in her presence.

"Good morning, Yaoyorozu." He greeted her with a nod.

"So, what have you been up to lately? You haven't been around." She stuffed her hands into her jacket pockets, tilting her head to the side in a small angle.

"Just getting some extra training done." He shrugged.

She let out an audible sigh. "This is about the sports festival, isn't it?"

"Is it that obvious?" He glanced at her, just in time to hear her scoff loudly.

"It's the U.A. sports festival, the thing you watch even if your favourite team is in a game on a different channel." She remarked sarcastically. "Of course it's that obvious."

His gaze lingered on her. "Don't you have anything similar at Shiketsu?"

Her lips formed a smirk. "Yes, we do, except it's actually a sports festival and not a showcasing of our students."

He frowned at her sudden animosity towards U.A..

"Did something happen?" He decided to ask her, to which she responded by merely raising her eyebrows.

Silence settled between them, but it was broken when she finally sighed and looked away. "I'm sorry, it's just… none of the other schools are particularly fond of U.A., for given reasons."

He averted his gaze as well, nodding understandingly. To everybody else, they were just arrogant show-offs. "It's alright, there's no need to be sorry."

"If you say so." She answered, not sounding particularly convinced.

* * *

"You. Are. Still. Too. Slow." His father accentuated every word with a blow to his torso. Todoroki started coughing violently, and he doubted he would be able to eat anything that evening.

"That's it, you're staying here in the mornings. I don't care what you were doing before that, but from now on we're training until it's actually time for you to leave for school."

His father's words were final, and against his own will, he managed a meek "Yes, father." in response.

* * *

"Man, the sports festival is so close, I can taste it!" Kaminari spoke excitedly, causing the rest of the class to fall into chatter about said festival.

"Do you think any agencies will want to take any of us?"

"Ooooh, it'd be awesome if one of the really pro heroes offered us an internship! Could you believe it?"

"That settles it, we're all going to do our best and give this our all!" One particularly loud voice broke through the rest, belonging to Uraraka. "We're all going to show the world what we got!" There was a confident smile on her lips, but it wavered.

* * *

Midoriya excused himself from his group of friends, disappearing into the hallway leading to the teacher's room.

Todoroki was no idiot. After watching the guy for a while, it was clear as day that he had some sort of special relationship with All Might. As for exactly what that relationship was, Todoroki was going to find out, somehow.

* * *

He was headed to school, with a timing that would allow him to be just on time. His cheek still stung from where his father had hit him the day before, and he subconsciously touched the bandage that covered it.

"Todoroki." A female voice said his name, tearing him out of his thoughts. He turned around, finding himself face to face with Yaoyorozu.

There was a deep frown on her face, and it only became deeper once her eyes fell on the injury on his cheek.

"Is something the matter, Yaoyorozu?" He asked her. "If it's nothing important, I think we're both late for school."

Her lips pulled into a thin line. "It's probably not my place to say this, but don't you think you are overdoing it?"

"What do mean?" He inquired, confusion evident in his voice.

Her gaze fell to the asphalt ground between them. "This whole sports festival thing. It's consuming you, isn't it?"

Todoroki searched his mind for a plausible answer, but his mouth ended up speaking before he settled on anything. "Someone like you wouldn't understand."

She laughed half-heartedly. "I expected something along those lines, but I think you should cut yourself some slack. I'm worried about you, you know?"

"There's nothing to be worried about." He answered stiffly.

" _You have no need for friends, Shouto."_

"I… I just want you to be aware of what you are doing to yourself, and that I hope that this is really what you want to do."

She looked back up, locking her eyes with his, but when no further words passed between them, she sighed and shook her head. "I'm sorry for bothering you."

She whipped around, and then she was gone in the distance.

Todoroki stared after her, forgetting that he was late for school. He just pushed her away, didn't he? A part of him filled with instant regret, but another part wondered whether it was perhaps the right thing to do. Maybe his father was right, he didn't need any friends.

* * *

Dwelling on his relationship with Yaoyorozu, existent or now non-existent, wasn't going to get him anywhere, especially with his father breathing down his neck, so Todoroki didn't have much choice but to procrastinate dealing with Yaoyorozu.

The day of the sports festival came closer and closer, until it was finally here. His father patted him on the shoulder before he left the house, a not so friendly reminder that he 'better not fuck up', as Bakugou would express it.

* * *

"Midoriya, I will defeat you." He declared when it was just the two of them. The events of the preliminaries didn't matter. It was this one fight that would settle it all.

He would show his father that he could defeat even All Might's favourite student with just the powers he inherited from his mother.

However, the green-haired boy looked downright confused and lost in context at his statement.

Todoroki scowled. "Aren't you All Might's secret love child?"

The confusion on the boy's face grew beyond boundaries that Todoroki never knew even existed, and with a sigh he found himself explaining everything to Midoriya.

As for why, he wasn't quite sure, but maybe it was to compensate for never explaining things to a certain other person.

* * *

It was futile. Midoriya was only hurting himself by standing up to him. He should just give up. He stomped on the ground one more time, releasing a huge wave of ice. Begrudgingly, he noted the decrease in velocity, but kept a stern face on nonetheless. His fingers twitched by his side, but he ignored it.

"Why are you doing this?" Todoroki asked over the battlefield, not able of understanding Midoriya's desperate attempt to fight him. Why was he still standing in his way? "Why are you going so far?"

Midoriya's eyes glanced at his broken fingers, then directed themselves back at Todoroki.

"You're trembling, Todoroki." The green-haired boy managed a shaky smile. "There's only so much cold your body can take, right?" He chuckled lightly. "It would be easy to solve that problem by using your left side, right?"

Todoroki scowled, a low growl escaping his lips. No, he didn't want to consider that possibility.

"When everybody else is giving this their all, trying so hard to fight for their dreams, don't you think that's kinda selfish?!" The determined look in his eyes intensified. "You want to win with only half your strength?! Come at me with everything you've got!"

Todoroki clenched his fist by his side, deciding to just screw it. If that's what he wanted, that's what he'd get. He engaged in close combat, but Midoriya seemed to have a plan up his sleeve, and in the blink of an eye, he was skidding backwards, dangerously close to the boundaries. He managed to throw up a wall to stop himself barely in time, but he felt himself grow stiffer and tired. He was nearing his limit.

"You want to know why I'm doing this?! Because I want to be a cool hero!" Midoriya screamed across the field, looking like hell with dusty clothes and broken limbs, but his eyes shone with such earnestness that Todoroki just couldn't look away. It was like looking into a mirror, and his younger self was waving back at him, his smiling mother by his side.

Foolish, childish thoughts, he wanted to dismiss them, and concentrate on this fight. He wasn't going to let anything else bother him, especially not the people who have distanced themselves from him.

In the moment he sunk into his thoughts, Midoriya closed in on him, landing another solid blow. With a grunt he flew backwards.

The determination in Midoriya's eyes had morphed into anger, anger directed at him. "I don't know everything about your circumstances, or your resolve, but if you're aiming to become number one without giving it your all, don't you think you're just screwing around?!"

Against his own will, his mother's voice began echoing in his mind. Midoriya was saying something else, but he couldn't make out any of the words. Another punch hit him in the gut, and once again he found himself airborne.

"IT'S YOUR POWER, ISN'T IT?!" Midoriya's desperate voice reached his ears, just as the echoing voice from his memories formed one coherent sentence.

" _It's okay for you to become who you want to be."_

Another female voice, from newer memories, mingled with his mother's. Yaoyorozu.

" _I hope that this is really what you want to do."_

What he wanted to be? What he wanted to do?

Warmth spilled from his left side, enveloping him in flames he swore he'd never use in battle.

He wanted to become the number one hero, and he wanted to win this goddamn fight.

The frost on his right side began to melt away as his body temperature regulated itself again. "Helping your enemy… which one of us is screwing around now?" He chuckled.

But there was a look of approval in Midoriya's eyes, and they'd finish this, both of them giving this their all.

A final laugh escaped his lips. "Midoriya… thanks."

* * *

The moment he was let out of the infirmary with a stern look from Recovery Girl, he sprinted down to the river side, even though he was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to running either.

But he didn't care. This was too important, he couldn't let this go. Honestly, he didn't even know if she would be there, but he had to try.

It seemed so far away, so out of his reach, and he could have sworn it was closer to the school grounds. The setting sun challenged him to a race, a race he was not planning on losing.

"Yaoyorozu!" He called out, hoping the lone figure in the distance was the girl in question. "Yaoyorozu!"

The figure's head jerked up, turning towards him, her long black hair being swept up by a gust of wind in that exact moment.

He finally arrived by her side, panting heavily. "Yaoyorozu." He breathed.

She was still staring at him in slight surprise. "Good evening, Todoroki."

"I'm sorry." He blurted out immediately. "I… I shouldn't have said what I said. I wasn't thinking straight! You were right!"

Her eyes widened even further, but he continued speaking before any words could pass her lips.

"I… I want to be your friend, if you'll let me!" He rambled on, searching her face for any sort of acceptance.

She remained silent for a few agonizing seconds, and then she giggled, completely catching him off guard.

"Oh Todoroki, you really put a lot of thought into this, didn't you?" She spoke softly, her trademark smile ghosting on her lips. Then it broke into the full thing. "Of course I'll be your friend. Didn't I say so already?"

Relief washed over him, and for the first time in a long while, he finally managed to drown out his father's nagging voice in the back of his head.

Midoriya, his mother, Yaoyorozu, they were all right. This was his power. This was his life. These were his decisions to make. He could be whatever he wanted to be. He could do whatever he wanted to do.

* * *

He felt nervous, staring at the name plaque that spelled out 'Mrs. Todoroki'. This was the new him, and the new him didn't listen to his father's restrictions.

With a deep breath, he pushed open the door.

There she sat, still the spitting image of the woman who poured hot water over his face. The woman who would hold him lovingly and tell him to believe in his dreams.

Her wide eyes stared at him in disbelief, until they teared up and a wide smile grew on her face. "Shouto." She whispered his name.

He gulped. "Mother." He greeted her back, his voice breaking slightly as the emotions he kept under lock and key spilled out. He took hesitant steps towards her, and once he was within her reach, she threw her arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug.

"Oh god, my baby boy." She whispered into his shirt. "Look at you, all grown up."

"It's been too long." He admitted, returning her embrace. Yes, this was the caring mother he wanted to remember. This was what Fuyumi reminded him of whenever she smiled.

"You're in high school already, aren't you? How time flies by…" She stroked his hair gently, and he nodded in response.

"Tell me, have you made any friends yet?" There was worry in her voice, and he couldn't help but chuckle at how Fuyumi resembled her so much.

This time when answering the question, he smiled confidently. "Yes, yes I have."

* * *

 **AN: Double update because inspiration hit me and math lectures are overrated.**

 **Also, I finally got this to my usual chapter size. I hope I can keep this up, but I won't promise anything.**

 **I re-watched the Izuku vs. Todoroki fight twice for the dialogue, then spent half an hour crying because of the feels before actually sitting down to write this. FML.**

 **It's one in the morning, but sleep's overrated as well.**

 **Reviews and thoughts on the story are alwys appreciated!**

 **~Emi**


	5. Brewing Storm

_**The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **V. Brewing Storm**_

Momo absentmindedly stared out of the window, counting the clouds that were drifting by. She let out a long sigh, turning back to face the blackboard, but nearly jumped out of her chair when she found herself face to face with somebody else.

Camie Utsushimi grinned at her while leaning backwards over her own chair. "Yo, Yaomomo, can you help me out?"

Exhaling, Momo nodded. "Of course, Utsushimi. What do you need?"

The blonde illusionist pulled her glossy lips into a smile. "Sweet! It's about this math problem from yesterday. I just can't seem to understand it."

She showed Momo which problem she was talking about, pointing to it with a perfectly manicured finger.

"I get that you have to look for x, but I don't understand where this y comes from." Utsushimi grumbled. "And also, what do numbers and letters have to do with each other?"

"…It's called algebra." Momo answered with a shaky smile. As much as she loved helping other students out, some were just too tough for even her.

"Aloe Vera? Isn't that that thing you use to get rid of wrinkles?" Utsushimi tilted her head to the side, a blank look on her face.

Shaking her head, Momo ignored that statement. "That aside, y is just another name for the function of x."

Utsushimi was still looking at her, almost expectantly, to go on. Suppressing a sigh, Momo handed her back her sheet of paper. "Why don't you meet me in the library after class? I'll try explaining it to you again."

"You're the best, Yaomomo! I'm so glad to have you as a friend!" The girl practically leapt over the desk, enveloping Momo in a quick hug.

Camie Utsushimi was a kind and cheerful girl, even if her manner of speaking was a bit… hard to understand at times. She also wasn't the brightest in class, but her lip gloss was blinding enough to compensate.

Still, she wore her heart on her sleeve. And hearing that she considered Momo a friend…

Momo smiled back at her, a warm feeling in her chest. "No problem, Utsushimi."

"Oh, call me Camie! Calling me by my last name is so not cute." The girl chided her with a pout.

Chuckling, Momo complied. "Of course, Camie."

* * *

"Ah, Todoroki, do you want to join us for lunch?"

Looking up from his textbook, Todoroki met Midoriya's gaze. "Sure, why not?"

"Great, I'll let Uraraka know. We'll be heading to the cafeteria, if you don't mind." The green-haired boy held a kind smile on his lips, gesturing to the girl in question who was waiting by the door.

"I don't mind." Todoroki answered, closing his textbook and standing up.

"Iida would have joined us as well, but he went to the hospital earlier, since…" Midoriya drifted off awkwardly, clearly uncomfortable with the subject.

The news of what had happened to Ingenium had reached pretty much everybody at this point, but it still wasn't something any of them wanted to talk about yet.

"I understand." Todoroki cut him off quickly. From his left, a boisterous laughter sounded.

Yoarashi was laughing at something Kirishima had said, but he still had the ability to shoot Todoroki a cold glare.

"Todoroki, are you coming?" Midoriya's voice called out to him, making him tear his gaze off of Yoarashi.

"Yeah, I'll be right there." He responded, throwing one last glance over his shoulder as he followed Midoriya and his friends out of the classroom.

* * *

"Hey, Yoarashi."

Todoroki watched the taller boy's back stiffen. He actually planned to avoid trouble, if possible, but this was getting ridiculous. The wind-user was perfectly sociable and friendly with everybody except Todoroki, and it was beginning to irk him.

So here he was, taking one of Yaoyorozu's pieces of advice. Talking things out. At least, attempting to. He had even waited for classes to be over.

"What do you want?" Yoarashi grunted rudely. "I have better things to do than to talk to you."

"I just have a quick question for you. Do you have some kind of problem with me?" Todoroki kept it short and straight to the point. It was clear neither of them liked beating round the bush.

Yoarashi pulled his lips into a thin line, his brows furrowed. "Your eyes." He finally responded. "I really don't like that look in your eyes."

Without waiting for an answer, he exited the school, leaving a confused Todoroki in the hallway.

* * *

The next morning, as Todoroki stood in front of the mirror in his bathroom, brushing his teeth, he looked at his reflection.

His eyes? Sure, his heterochromia did need some getting used to, but he knew that that wasn't what Yoarashi meant.

Setting his toothbrush back down, he covered the left side of his face, including the vibrant blue eye he had inherited from his oh-so-beloved father.

Maybe he looked friendlier without it? Shaking his head at his straying thoughts, he left the bathroom.

Fuyumi probably already made breakfast.

* * *

"Yaoyorozu, is there anything strange about my eyes?"

She paused mid-stretch, looking up at him. "…I beg your pardon?"

Todoroki held a thoughtful frown on his face. "My eyes. Is there anything strange about them?" He reiterated for her, and she realized he was dead-serious.

"Uh… besides different melanin levels, no?" She answered hesitantly.

"I see, thank you." He seemed to accept the answer, grumbling to himself incoherently, then shaking his head and continuing his own exercises.

Momo wondered what that was all about. "Did something happen?" She inquired once curiosity got the better of her. She took his silence as a 'yes'. "Do you want to talk about it?" She asked instead.

"No, at least, not yet." He mumbled in response.

Deciding not to press any further, Momo continued her own routine.

* * *

"Internships!" Somebody called out loudly, the singular cheer drowning in the exited chatter of the students of class 1-A.

"Oooh, I hope I got some offers!"

"Ugh, I don't think I did. I did terribly during the sports festival." Midoriya muttered dejectedly. "There's no way anybody would want me."

"You shouldn't sell yourself short, Deku." Uraraka comforted him.

Bakugou pulled a face, but didn't say anything. Obviously, he was still upset about what happened during the sports festival.

Soon afterwards, Yoarashi came in and slumped into his seat at the window, not sparing Todoroki a single glance.

Iida also slid into his seat silently, clear signs of exhaustion on his face, but still smiling at his friends.

Eventually, even their teacher entered, accompanied by Midnight.

Todoroki already knew this was going to another long day.

* * *

Hero name?

He didn't want anything fancy, he knew that much. Nothing as boisterous as his father's, either. It shouldn't be as grand as All Might, either.

He wanted something simple. Something that represented himself. Something that separated him from his father.

He stared at the paper in deep thought.

There was really only one thing that was his, and his alone.

 _Shouto._

* * *

"Oooookay, what about her?" Camie's bright red fingernail pointed at a girl with a neat, brown bob.

"It suits her." Momo replied, taking a sip of her tea. "But she'd also look good with longer hair."

Nodding in agreement, Camie's eyes flitted over the crowd to look for their next 'fashion victim'. In other words, the blonde was trying to teach her about what was 'in' and what was 'completely out of the friggin' question'.

Once Camie had learned that Momo had received a rather traditional and reserved upbringing, she had made it her personal mission to bring her up to date with what was 'hip' and 'trendy'.

Momo let out a sigh as the list of new words she was supposed to be learning just kept getting longer and longer, to the point that she might as well start learning a new language.

Still, she knew that Camie had good intentions. It was the bubbly girl's own way of paying her back for their study sessions after school.

"What do you think about that girl's skirt?" The perfectly manicured finger zoned in on its next target, a teenager with a burgundy skirt which was decorated with soft ruffles.

"It's cute." Momo admitted. It was a nice skirt, she wouldn't mind wearing it herself.

"Hmmm… that guy's shirt?"

"Basic, but he can make it work."

Camie grinned at her. "Ah, having some girl talk sure is nice. Additionally, you're fully informed of the latest trends now."

"Although I'm not sure when that knowledge would come in handy, since we spent the majority of our time in our school uniforms and hero costumes." Momo pointed out.

"Yeah, that's why it's a good thing our uniforms are so cute." Camie nodded to herself, adjusting the bow around her neck. "Even if the hat messes up my hair sometimes."

Momo laughed at that, remembering the countless times Camie would try to smooth down her hair during the day, cursing friction – rightfully so, much to the surprise of her classmates – but ultimately only causing more friction in her hair, thus charging it even further.

In her own defense, Momo had tried explaining the principle of charge transfer to Camie, but the girl's blank face spoke for itself.

The sun already began to set when the two girl's paid their bills and exited the mall. Waving each other goodbye, they each left in their respective directions.

Not even five minutes after parting from each other, Momo's phone buzzed, alerting her of a new message, undoubtedly Camie who was sending her random thoughts she had.

Soon enough she got home, closing the door behind her quietly.

"Momo, welcome back." Her mother greeted her while the maid took away her coat.

"Good evening, Mother." She gave her mother a quick, customary hug with a soft air kiss over her cheek (like European people apparently did).

"How was your day, dear?"

"It was nice. Camie took me out for tea as a thanks for tutoring her." Momo told her while taking off her boots.

Her mother nodded approvingly. "Well, you're just in time for dinner. Won't you join us?"

It was a rhetorical question. Momo glanced at the clock, realizing she had cut it pretty closely. It was five to six. At six, sharp, the butler would begin serving dinner.

"I'll be right there." She assured her mother, pulling off her second boot. "I just want to bring my bag to my room first."

Her mother nodded, then headed back into the dining hall.

* * *

After dinner, she sat down at her desk to get some studying done and to finish up her homework. Humming to herself softly, her pen moving continuously over her assignment sheets, she focused on her tasks.

Until a buzz tore her out of her concentration. Glancing to the right, she realized it had been her phone.

"Oh, right, Camie messaged me just now." She mumbled to herself, reaching for it and switching on the screen.

Much to her surprise, right underneath Camie's unread message composed mostly of emoji, was another unread message. From Todoroki.

She raised an eyebrow in curiosity, tapping on it.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] Can I ask you something?_

She stared at the message for a good minute, unsure of what to make of it. Her thoughts drifted back to the strange question he asked her not too long ago.

Gnawing on her bottom lip, she typed in her reply.

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Of course you can. That's what friends are for._

She waited to see whether he would reply immediately or not, but when he didn't, she decided to answer Camie's message and go back to studying.

* * *

Todoroki's fingers hovered over his phone's screen. He didn't know what compelled him to ask her in the first place, but when it came to getting advice from anybody, he just felt like she was the right choice.

He hesitated. Just earlier he had been so sure about this, but now… not anymore.

Could he really do something as selfish as bring up the internships? He knew they were a U.A.-exclusive deal, at least for first-years like them.

And he remembered. That one time, when Yaoyorozu had sounded slightly bitter about his school. Of course, she was a fundamentally kind person, but she had clearly been influenced by her environment at Shiketsu.

Not that he blamed her, nor any of her classmates.

His eyes glanced at the time stamp of her reply. That was six minutes ago already.

Clicking his tongue, he deleted the sentence he had just typed out. It didn't sound right yet.

With a sigh, he reread his newest draft. It'd have to do. He hit 'send'.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] If you had the choice, would you choose taking the option with the most favourable outcome for all parties involved even if it meant sacrificing your comfort or would you take the option that would align with your own interests, despite potentially putting others at a disadvantage?_

He furrowed his brows in anticipation of her reply, the list of agencies that offered him an internship resting next to him on his desk.

Not too long afterwards, his screen lit up.

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Do I get any context? It's okay if you don't want to tell me._

He let out a small sigh of relief, fingers already typing out his response.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] I'm sorry._

He really was, but this wasn't something he wanted to discuss in detail with anybody. And Yaoyorozu respected his personal space, one of the many things he appreciated about her.

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] It's okay._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] I don't think I can answer this for you, but perhaps asking yourself something else instead might be a good idea._

He waited a two minutes (he checked the clock) to see whether she was going to write anything else. When she didn't, he assumed she was waiting for him to reply.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] What do you mean?_

Her response came a few seconds later.

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Well, what would a hero do?_

His breath hitched when he read the question. Then he read it again.

He swallowed the clump in his throat. Of course she'd see the answer. It was clear as day, after all.

He was just blinded by his own emotions. Reaching out for the list of agencies, his eyes singled out the one he was looking for, right at the top of the list.

After quickly sending Yaoyorozu one more message, he dumped the list in his trash can. If he wanted to become a hero, the kind of hero he wanted himself to become, he'd definitely need to learn to use his left side better.

Even if it meant asking his father for help.

* * *

Momo tilted her head to the side in confusion. She just didn't understand Todoroki's abrupt jumps in thoughts sometimes.

She shook her head, a small smile on her face.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] Thank you, Yaoyorozu._

Whatever it was, she was glad she could help him out.

She let out a long yawn, closing her textbook. It was time to call it a day and crawl into her nice, warm bed.

* * *

 **AN: Hopefully, I won't need another five months to update again.**

 **Fun fact: I tried imitating the way Camie speaks, I really did, but I found myself cringing halfway through writing her dialogue... I just can't.**

 **Please leave a review if you enjoyed it :)**

 **~Emi**


	6. Thunderstruck

_**The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **VI. Thunderstruck**_

"Our internships start next week, man, I'm so excited!" Midoriya could hardly sit still, a wide grin on his face as he shared his enthusiasm with his friends.

Todoroki took a bite of his sandwich, not entirely able of getting on board of that enthusiasm.

As expected, his father had been elated to find out Todoroki chose to intern at his agency, but it didn't change the fact that there was a part of him that didn't want to do it.

But Yaoyorozu's words really helped pushing those thoughts aside. He was training to become a hero. If he wanted to be a good hero, he'd need to control his flames better.

"What's on your mind, Todoroki?" Iida asked him suddenly.

The class president had joined them on their last day of school before the internships started. He was still visibly stressed, but it seemed he found peace of mind in something. Whatever it was, Iida looked a little better now.

"Nothing much." Todoroki answered, taking another bite of bread.

"Must be internship stuff, right?" Uraraka grinned. "I can't really blame you, all of us can't wait for it. Especially you, with that huge list of agencies to choose from."

"Which one did you choose in the end, anyways?" Midoriya inquired.

Todoroki deliberately slowed down his chewing, not quite comfortable with all attention suddenly on him. When the three of them seemed to only lean in closer, eagerly awaiting an answer, he swallowed his food and gave in.

"…My father's one."

The eager expressions all fell at the same time, silence reigning over the group of four.

"O-oh." Midoriya remarked awkwardly. "That's, um, unexpected."

"It is very admirable of you, Todoroki." Iida nodded in approval.

Despite not having told anybody except Midoriya about his family issues, Uraraka and Iida just seemed to… know, somehow. Todoroki highly doubted Midoriya would go around telling everyone he met about it, so it made him wonder… Was it really that obvious that he had a strained relationship with his father?

Not that it mattered, since Uraraka took the initiative to change subjects.

"Ah, once the internships are over, we have to start preparing for our end of term tests!" She spoke quickly, accidentally making her fork float in her flurry of words.

"Yes, right." Iida answered, picking the fork out of mid-air and passing it back to their classmate. "I expect everyone to do their best on the tests."

"Mhm, I still have to revise that last math chapter. I just can't seem to wrap my head around the theory…" Midoriya grumbled.

"Not as much as I do…" Uraraka grumbled, carefully putting her piece of cutlery back on the table. "All of you are so smart."

"Ahaha, don't say such things." Midoriya replied bashfully.

"I'm sure you can persevere by putting your all into your studies." Iida reassured her, at least attempted to.

"You're right, I'll do my best!" She chirped.

Todoroki decided to take another bite of his sandwich instead of saying anything. With the attention shift to Uraraka, he didn't want to lead it back to himself.

* * *

Todoroki was surprised to bump into Yaoyorozu at the mall.

Sure, he was fully aware of the fact that they lived in the same city, but since they never really met outside of the clearing under the bridge, it sort of slipped his mind.

"Ah, Todoroki. It's good to see you." Yaoyorozu greeted him with her trademark smile. There was a blonde girl next to her, looking at him curiously.

"Yaoyorozu." He nodded back.

"Oh, how rude of me." She gestured towards the blonde girl. "This is Camie Utsushimi, a classmate of mine. Camie, this is Shouto Todoroki, a friend of mine."

The Utsushimi girl stepped forward, her hand stretched out and a bright grin on her face. "You're the dude from U.A., right? I can't believe Yaomomo didn't tell me how much of a looker you were."

He hesitantly shook her hand, not sure he understood half of what she just said.

"Camie! You shouldn't judge people by their appearances." Yaoyorozu chided her, clearly more knowledgeable of the blonde's slang.

"Still, you could've told me. But that's no biggie, I got to meet him, and he seems like a chill guy." Utsushimi laughed it off. Then she turned back to him. "Todoroki, right? Wanna exchange contact info?"

"Please ignore her, she's always like this." Yaoyorozu apologized. "You don't have to do anything you don't want to do."

"Yaomomoooo, you're no fun. We could've hung out together and stuff and I would finally have had the opportunity to say 'fam'." The blonde girl whined. "Plus, a handsome guy with two beauties is the ultimate combo."

Todoroki lost track of the conversation halfway through, only really taking note of the girl's nickname for Yaoyorozu.

Yaomomo. A neat portmanteau of her first and last name that actually suited her quite well.

"I hope we aren't keeping you from any other responsibilities." Yaoyorozu addressed him again. "Camie just tends to speak before she thinks."

He glanced at the overly large clock in the mall. "It's alright. I'm not in a hurry."

"Great!" Utsushimi chirped. "Then join us for some tea!"

"I wouldn't want to intrud-" Before he could politely decline, the blonde had taken hold of his sleeve with one hand and hooked her other arm through Yaoyorozu's, pulling both of them towards the café down the hall.

"Don't blabber about intr- whatever that is. A friend of Yaomomo's is a friend of mine." The girl said without a second thought, clearly stumbling over a word there.

Todoroki didn't respond. It was odd.

Just a few weeks ago, at the beginning of the schoolyear, he would have done everything to avoid a situation like this.

But now? Now he didn't mind.

He still had some time before Fuyumi served dinner, and you spend time with your friends, right? Yaoyorozu was undoubtedly a friend, so this counted.

"I know this is rather spontaneous," Yaoyorozu smiled apologetically, "But it'd be nice if you could stay."

"Uh… sure." As if he could say no when she looked at him like that.

* * *

Despite her eccentricities, Camie Utsushimi was a good-natured person with a quirk so fitting it was like a match made in heaven.

And over the short period of time he spent with them in that café, he managed to figure out what most of her sentences meant.

At least he hoped he interpreted them correctly.

Utsushimi, in all her bubbliness, asked a lot of questions about U.A..

"I heard you have a fancy pool! How fancy is it on scale from one to ten?" The blonde blubbered while taking a large sip of her iced coffee.

"Camie, we also have a pool." Yaoyorozu pointed out.

"But theirs is probably bigger."

"That just means that they have to swim longer laps."

"Oh, right!" Camie gasped, then turned back to Todoroki. "Forget that I just asked that, 'kay?"

"Um, okay." Todoroki mumbled.

"Next question: What are your classmates like? I mean, we already saw all their quirks on TV and stuff, but what are they like?"

"You mean besides the aggressive blonde one?" Yaoyorozu deadpanned while stirring her tea.

"Yeah, besides the super-angry Pomeranian." Camie agreed without batting a lash.

Todoroki found that that was the worst time possible to be drinking his green tea. Nearly choking on the liquid, he began coughing abruptly.

Did she… Did she seriously just call _Bakugou_ a super-angry _Pomeranian_?

"Camie, I told you not to call him that." Yaoyorozu chided her friend with a sigh, this obviously being a reoccurring incident.

"But gurl, have you _seen_ his hair?! It looks exactly like a Pomeranian!" Utsushimi defended herself stubbornly.

"While that may be true, we have to show each other respec-"

"Blah blah blah, whatevs." The blonde girl huffed. "I was asking him about his classmates."

Todoroki glanced at Utsushimi warily, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "They're, uh, pleasant enough. For the most part."

* * *

It was only by coincidence that his gaze drifted over the clock, alerting him of how much time had passed.

"Oh dear, it's pretty late." Yaoyorozu said, her line of sight following his. "I think it'd be best for all of us to head home."

Utsushimi pulled a face. "That means homework. I don't wanna do homework."

"Just write to me if you have any difficulties, okay?" Yaoyorozu chuckled while taking out her purse.

After paying and exiting the mall, Utsushimi was the first to say goodbye, heading into the opposite direction.

Todoroki furrowed his brow. "You're also heading this way, Yaoyorozu?"

The mall was located pretty central, and considering the fact that she attended Shiketsu, he had always assumed she lived in the western part of the city.

"Well, yes… Why do you ask?" She seemed confused by his question, tilting her head slightly.

"Isn't it quite a detour for you to go to school then?" He asked. "Shiketsu High is on the other side of town."

"Oh, that." Yaoyorozu chuckled awkwardly. "It is quite a long way, but it makes for good morning exercise."

Did that mean that her jogging route past the riverbank was her going to school? And not some complicated roundtrip as he had assumed at first?

Yaoyorozu sighed, pulling Todoroki out of his thoughts. "Actually, that's not the real reason."

"It isn't? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, you know?" He echoed her words from the night before. It was a two-way deal, after all.

"No, no, I was going to tell you sooner or later, I was just looking for a good opportunity." She paused and gnawed on her bottom lip. "I… I was going to attend U.A. at first."

This made Todoroki stop walking abruptly. "What?"

She let out another sigh. "It's pretty complicated. I even had official recommendations and all that stuff."

He stared at her in disbelief. What could possibly have happened that Yaoyorozu, _Yaoyorozu_ didn't make it into U.A.?

And then, another realization hit him. If she had official recommendations… just like himself… Did that mean she was also at the entrance exam for scholarship students?

Did that mean they had technically met before?

"Truthfully, one of the main reasons I spoke to you at the beginning of the schoolyear was because I remembered seeing you at the entrance exam." She admitted, confirming his thoughts.

"I…" Todoroki was at a loss for words. The whole entrance exam was nothing more than a blur for him, he only really remembered the resentment he held towards his father and his conviction to not use a single flame in the whole ordeal. "I'm sorry."

"What for?" Yaoyorozu asked in confusion.

"I don't remember seeing you there…"

She smiled and waved it off. "It's alright. You seemed pretty anxious and weren't really paying attention to anybody, so don't break your head over it. You just have a pretty memorable appearance, so I recognized you quite easily."

Yaoyorozu, bluntly laying down the facts.

He cleared his throat. "So… what happened?"

Yaoyorozu shrugged. "I tied with another student. We had the exact same score, but there are only four recommendation slots, so one of us wasn't going to pass. U.A. sent us a message in which they said they would prepare secondary tests to decide a victor, but… Well, I guess I was excited, I mean, I did want to go to U.A., but... the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this other student also really wanted to attend U.A. …"

She lifted her head, looking up at the darkening sky. "And then I asked myself: What would a hero do?"

She returned her gaze to Todoroki, a small smile on her lips. "In the end, I decided to retract my application and attend Shiketsu instead. Prestige-wise, both schools are pretty much the same, even if U.A. gets more publicity, so I didn't really mind. I just… I just didn't want to destroy someone else's dream because of my selfishness."

Todoroki swallowed the lump in his throat. "I don't think that qualifies as selfishness, Yaoyorozu."

"Maybe, maybe not. But there's one thing I do know for sure: It's important for us to help each other out, and to support each other, especially when we are still this young. Besides, I'm happy at Shiketsu. I was even voted vice-president of our class." She chuckled. "I didn't think I would get that many votes. I almost got as many as Moura did."

Todoroki remained silent, letting the information wash over him. He wasn't as selfless as Yaoyorozu. He couldn't have done what she did. He would have taken the additional exam and made sure to pummel his opponent into the ground, and then have the nerve to call himself a hero-in-training.

How shameful.

"I would have voted for you."

Yaoyorozu snapped her head towards him. "Huh?"

"If you were in my class, I would have also voted for you." He said again. "You… you'll be a great hero one day."

Yaoyorozu stared at him with wide eyes. "W-where did that come from?" She clearly attempted to put it as a joke, but it came out dead-serious. He was also sure that that was the first time he ever heard her stutter.

"It's the truth, that's all." He answered.

"That aside, I hope that student is happy at U.A.." Yaoyorozu laughed it off.

"I hope so too." Todoroki agreed. He wondered which student it was. One of the 1-B recommandation students perhaps? Or... Yoarashi?

* * *

Working with his father was a lot more strenuous than he'd imagined it. While Endeavour had gone as far as to actually praise him not once, but twice, it still weighed heavily on his heart.

Before he left, he'd paid a short visit to his mother.

She smiled and told him to do what he felt was the right thing. Her smile had been worried, but also supportive.

Yaoyorozu's story also weighed heavily on him, spurning him on to swallow his pride and get through this.

"…portant to keep an eye on your immediate environment. Our quirks can cause collateral damage faster than you'd think, and the last thing we want is for an innocent bystander to get hurt. So make sure to always visualize exactly where you send your flames."

Todoroki nodded numbly.

Blinded by his rage and one-sided view point, Todoroki had never realized that… that Endeavour was actually a competent hero. Perhaps even a _good_ hero.

Endeavour was definitely better at heroism than parenting, that much was for sure.

There was a certain confidence to the man's voice as he described the street nooks and quick rescue procedures, the words rolling off his tongue with ease.

He was completely in his element, and much to Todoroki's horror, it was valuable information. Ever since his childhood, Todoroki had been pretty adept at drowning out his father's harsh words, concentration focused on biting back his tears.

But right now, he didn't know how to deal with this. He didn't know how to deal with an Endeavour that didn't shout at him every five minutes.

It was making him feel antsy.

"Shouto, are you paying attention?" Endeavour's piercing blue eyes contrasted the bright flames surrounding them sharply.

"Yes."

"Good, we need to make the most out of this internship. I'm going to make sure you will have bested that other brat by th-"

"Midoriya." Todoroki abruptly interrupted his father.

Endeavour narrowed his eyes at him. "Excuse me?"

"That 'brat' has a name. It's Midoriya." Todoroki stood a little straighter, locking his gaze with his father's defiantly.

"… I will make sure you will have bested _Midoriya_ by the end of this." His father spat out the green-haired boy's name with as much venom as he could muster.

Shouto nodded. Baby steps, baby steps.

Besides, there was still an ongoing competition between Bakugou, Midoriya and himself. Some extra training wouldn't hurt.

* * *

On the third day, at night, all chaos broke out in Hosu. Screams erupted out of nowhere, an explosion sounded in the distance and his father put on his game face.

And somewhere amidst it all, Todoroki received a cryptic message from Midoriya consisting only of coordinates.

Coordinates that were too close for his liking. Ignoring his father, Shouto sprinted off, assuming the message was an SOS signal of sorts, not that he knew _why_ Midoriya was in Hosu City to begin with. Wasn't he supposed to be somewhere else? Not that it mattered, the boy was bound to run into trouble by just going grocery shopping.

Eyes flicking between his phone screen and the streets, he weaved his way through pedestrians, closer and closer to his destination.

Once he reached the coordinates, he cursed under his breath. According to the app, he should be at the right place, but he didn't see nor hear Midoriya anywhere. He ran further down the street, checking the area for any sign of the green-haired boy, but found none. Circling back, he decided to check all the alleys.

He didn't know what he had been expecting, but the scene in front of him was not it.

Iida, motionless on the ground.

Another Pro-Hero, slumped against the alley wall.

And a constricted Midoriya, screaming at the top of his lungs, begging the villain about to kill Iida to stop.

* * *

It was a mess.

At first, Todoroki seemed to be able to hold the villain at bay with his ranged attacks, spamming columns of fire and ice in the narrow alley, but the Hero Killer was too flexible and too fast for Todoroki to really land an attack on him.

He gritted his teeth together when one of Stain's attacks came too close for comfort once more.

At some point, Midoriya regained his mobility, but Stain swatted him away like a fly. Driven into a corner, the two of them fell back to strategize.

"It's the blood type." Midoriya said.

"What?" Todoroki asked, confused. Where was the context?

"His quirk. It has to do with blood types." The green-haired boy replied under his breath.

Todoroki narrowed his eyes. "Okay then, what now? We need to protect the other two, but I don't know how much longer we can hold out against him."

"Make sure he doesn't cut you. If he gets his hands on a single drop of your blood, its game over." Midoriya said seriously.

Nodding, Todoroki complied, pushing the other boy out of the way of another attack.

They dodged it pretty easily, but soon Stain was after them once more.

And then, Midoriya fell victim to one of Stains attacks, red liquid trickling from his leg. Pushing himself, he stood up again, prepared to take on the villain once more.

"Stop!" Iida's anguished voice tore through the alley. "Please, stop!"

"Iida!" Todoroki called out to their other classmate. "If you want this to stop, you need to stop making that face and get up!"

Iida's pained, angry expression was clear as day even during the night, the boy gritting his teeth together furiously.

Todoroki released another column of flames, shouting at Iida once more, "Is this what the man you want to be would do?! Is this what a hero would do?!"

Todoroki stomped on the ground, ice shooting up between Stain and himself. "You're the class representative of class 1-A! You better start behaving like it!"

The ice crumbled away, Stain's katana inching closer towards him, making Todoroki curse. He wouldn't be able to put up another wall in t-

The katana shattered suddenly, courtesy of Iida intercepting it, his eyes burning with new-found determination.

Everything after that was an exhilarating blur, consisting out of punches, kicks and too many close calls.

And then, it was finally over.

They stood tall, well, not really, but they stood tall as Stain laid on the ground, defeated.

* * *

"What?! How can you say such a thing?!" Todoroki shouted furiously. "Were we just supposed to let them die?!"

Gran Torino stepped in front of him, shaking his head. Iida also held up a hand.

Tsuragamae Kenji, Chief of Police, who had just suggested they broke the law by saving someone's life, cleared his throat. "That is, if all this had been a public event."

Todoroki backed down, lips pulled into a thin line.

"Luckily, with all the other disturbances going on in Hosu at the same time, there were hardly any witnesses of your actions. We'd like to keep things that way, which is why we prepared a cover story."

"A cover story?" Midoriya echoed.

The dog-like man nodded. "Of course, this cover story will have your guardians take credit for your actions, and as such, it won't be violating any rules. I'm fully aware that you may not like the thought of not getting recognition for your outstanding tasks, but this is for the best." He sighed. "I really don't want youngsters like you getting into trouble for something like this."

Midoriya was the first to respond. "No, it's alright. We understand."

Soon after, Todoroki and Iida nodded as well. "Thank you."

Tsuragamae shook his head. "No, thank you for being so understanding." He stood up, looking at the three young heroes-in-training in their hospital beds.

"You three… you three have promising futures ahead of you. Just try not to get into situations like this without a hero license, okay? We can't always cover things up for you." Tsuragamae chuckled and bid them farewell.

* * *

Due to their injuries, the three boys were forced to stay at the Hosu General hospital a bit longer than planned.

"It's like, I'm the "Hand Crusher" or something." Todoroki mumbled to himself while Midoriya and Iida compared scars. "Is it some kind of curse?"

The three of them looked at each other, then burst out laughing.

A knock at the door tore them out of their laughter. The young nurse assigned to their room peeked through the door. "Excuse, there's a visitor here for Mr. Todoroki."

Todoroki frowned and looked towards the door. His father already stopped by earlier that day, so who could it be?

He got his answer when a black-haired girl stepped into the room, face set in a scowl.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Todoroki asked the newcomer.

"Are you a magnet for trouble or something?" Yaoyorozu sceptically gave him a one-over. "Every time you go somewhere, you end up on the news because you got involved in something crazy."

She shook her head, folding her arms in front of herself. "Unbelievable, really. I nearly choked on my tea when I saw the report. Camie was sending me messages to no end."

"Well, you can tell Utsushimi that I'm perfectly fine."

Yaoyorozu simply raised a brow, giving his bandages a meaningful glance and daring him to repeat that sentence.

"Mostly. Kind of. I'm still alive." He corrected slowly.

She sighed. "Let's just hope you don't get attacked by random villains again in the near future, alright? And don't be so reckless, your luck might run out sooner than you think."

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, mother."

She nodded approvingly, then turned to the other two occupants of the room. "I know we've never met before, but the same goes for you two, understood?"

Midoriya and Iida simply nodded in agreement, confused by the girl's sudden presence, but not daring to say anything to her.

Then Todoroki realized something else. "Yaoyorozu… why are you in Hosu?"

"To scold you for being reckless." She answered without missing a beat. "And before you ask, there's a direct train connection, and Camie was bugging me about it."

She let out a long sigh and her stern features softened. "All that aside… that was very brave of all of you. Even if the Pro-Heroes hadn't been there, I'm sure you would have done something incredibly stupid. But I guess that's just part of being a hero."

Todoroki didn't know why, but whenever she spoke of heroism, it re-lit a flame in his heart. Her words were so earnest, so full and inspiring that she kept reminding him of the core of his dream, of all of their dreams.

It reminded him of the sacrifices she made so willingly and of how much he could learn from her. That was probably why he always ended up thanking her for those words.

Additionally, her intuition was too on point for her own good. He could already see the sweat drops forming on Midoriya's and Iida's foreheads at her too-close-to-the-truth statement.

"I'm here!" The door suddenly burst open, a frazzled Utsushimi standing in the doorway, clearly out of breath. "Is he still alive?!"

Todoroki blanched and shot the black-haired girl next to him a look.

"I told you she was bugging me, so I took her along." Yaoyorozu commented innocently, the corners of her lips tugging upwards suspiciously. "You don't mind, do you?"

* * *

 **AN: Aaaand... that's a wrap on the Stain arc! You should know by now that I gloss over canon events and paraphrase them a lot, so if you want to see the whole thing, go read the manga or watch the anime.**

 **Next time: The final exam arc, in which Yoarashi and Todoroki deal with their differences!**

 **Please leave a review, they make my day :)**

 **~Emi**


	7. Hurricane

_**The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **VII. Hurricane**_

"We were so worried about you!" Uraraka nearly bombarded them as they stepped into the classroom and clasped her hands in front of herself. "To think you guys were caught up in something so dangerous…"

Midoriya awkwardly scratched the back of his neck and looked off to the side. "Y-Yeah, we're all just glad to have made it out safely."

"Now is not the time to be worrying about such things." Iida interjected. "What about you, how was your internship?"

Uraraka's face lifted into a small, genuine smile. "Actually, it was great! I learned so many new things, met so many great people… It was a blast!"

"That sounds great!" Midoriya quipped in, the serious atmosphere slowly drifting apart as the classroom bubbled into life with loud chatter.

Todoroki nodded, then slid into his seat. The last few days had been a rollercoaster, to put it lightly. He's also pretty sure that both Yaoyorozu and Utsushimi left lasting impressions an Iida and Midoriya, but he wasn't sure whether those were positive or negative. Not that that mattered right now, since Yoarashi had turned towards him.

"So, your father had to come to your rescue?" Yoarashi's tone seemed mixed with emotions, but the most prominent was the clear contempt.

"What's it to you?" Todoroki asked, willing to give Yoarashi his undivided attention. Aizawa wouldn't be arriving anytime soon, after all.

The wind user stared at him with contemplating eyes, then averted his gaze. "It doesn't matter."

He let out a frustrated sigh. "Look, I have better things to do than to deal with your vague animosity, so if you have something to say to me, just say it to my face."

Yoarashi's head snapped back towards him, eyes wide as if he had just been caught. Then his brows sunk lower, forming a scowl on his face. "I don't like you."

"Yes, I've gathered that much, thank you very much." Todoroki deadpanned. "Anything else?"

God, Utsushimi was rubbing off on him, in a bad way.

"You should stop looking down on other people." Yoarashi said in a serious tone. "Not everyone is beneath you."

Wha-? Todoroki felt confusion wash over him, his opportunity to respond cut short by his classmates butting in.

"Woah, dude, not cool." Kirishima spoke up, leaping across a table to get to their side. "You're a great guy, Yoarashi, but that was seriously not cool. Todoroki never did anything wrong here, 'kay?"

Yoarashi turned his head towards the window. "You don't understand."

He could say that again, because Todoroki most definitely did not.

"Don't go around thinking you're hot shit, fuckin' Deku!" Bakugou shouted from the other side.

Todoroki's gaze drifted towards their other loud classmate, his eyes lingering on his spiky blonde hair.

 _Super-angry Pomeranian._

Great, now he couldn't even take Bakugou seriously anymore.

* * *

He felt a headache building up gradually, to which he grimaced and massaged his temples. It was currently lunch time and he was waiting for Midoriya and Uraraka to come back from getting their lunches.

Until then, he was alone at their table.

With Iida.

"Todoroki, what does she mean when she says that something is 'lit'? Did she light something on fire? That could be dangerous, you know."

Iida's phone was currently taking up most of Todoroki's field of vision, emoji-spammed text boxes that screamed 'Camie Utsushimi' filling the screen.

"I told you not to give her your number. I didn't either." He sighed, leaning back into his chair.

"But she asked me so earnestly, how could I say no? Besides, this has granted me the opportunity to learn so much about texting." Iida defended himself.

"Midoriya said no. _Midoriya._ Of all people. Said no."

Iida looked at him for a few seconds, almost as if he were searching for something. "Isn't Utsushimi your friend?" He finally asked.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean she should be texting you during school hours." Todoroki sighed, taking Iida's phone and typing a short, concise message that went straight to the point.

 _[Tenya Iida] Stop. -Todoroki_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] But I'm boooooooooooored \\(o.o)/_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] Yaomomo's busy (-.-)_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] Doing booooo-riiiiiiing stuff_

 _[Tenya Iida] Do your homework or some revisions. -Todoroki_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] C'mon (T.T)_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] Show me some luv!_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] Dude._

 _[Camie Utsushimi]_ _Brosef._

 _[Camie Utsushimi] Fam! You're supposed to be my fam!_

Todoroki still had no idea what it meant, but he didn't hesitate to fish out his own phone while ignoring her onslaught of messages.

Iida's phone dinged once more, but he leisurely ignored it while accessing his own recent messages.

Utsushimi did say Yaoyorozu was busy, but it wouldn't hurt to try.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] I heard you're busy, but I need a favour._

 _[Shouto Todoroki] Can you delete a contact from Utsushimi's phone without her realizing it?_

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] …_

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] It's only been three days._

"She suddenly started calling you a meanie." Iida relayed in the background. Todoroki looked up from his phone, taking in how weird it sounded for somebody like Iida to use the word 'meanie'.

"Ah, now she claims you're a cheater. Did you cheat against her in a card game or something?"

"No, that's just her rambling. I'm not a cheater."

"What's this about a cheater?" Uraraka asked as she set her tray on the table. "Did something happen?"

"Todoroki's friend was telling me that he is a cheater." Iida relayed to her, his phone following soon after.

Uraraka looked at the screen, at Todoroki, back at the screen, then back at him. Finally, she turned to Iida. "Are you sure this is Todoroki's friend? Not somebody else's?"

Midoriya leaned over Uraraka's shoulder to look at the subject of matter. "Oh, isn't this the blonde girl from the hospital?"

Uraraka raised her brow. "You know her?"

"Yeah, she and another girl came to visit Todoroki while we were in the hospital in Hosu." Midoriya explained. "I think her name was… Yaomomo?"

Todoroki's phone suddenly vibrated.

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Is it too much if I threaten to confiscate her phone?_

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Make her read a book instead? Or better yet, her homework?_

 _[Shouto Todoroki] Do you really think that would work?_

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] You're right._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Wait, I have an idea._

There was an unexpected silence when Iida stopped receiving notifications, and somehow everyone ended up watching his phone with baited breaths, their lunches forgotten.

A few minutes later, a single chime signaled a new message, and Uraraka, Midoriya and Iida huddled around the small screen.

"She says…" Iida relayed, "… that you and Yaomomo need to stop acting like overbearing parents."

* * *

Momo raised a brow at the message Camie had managed to send out before Momo got hold of her phone.

"Do you even know what 'overbearing' means?"

"No, but it sounds fancy and I'm sure it describes this perfectly." Camie pouted while reluctantly opening her math textbook. "And weren't you supposed to be doing class rep stuff or something?"

"I was, but Todoroki sent me a text. He wouldn't do something like that during school hours unless it was urgent." Momo explained. "And looking at these messages you sent his friend, I'm beginning to understa- did you seriously ask him what the answers to yesterday's homework were?"

"Um… maybe?"

"Camie, you can't just use people like that."

"But it works!"

"Just because it works doesn't mean you should do it."

Camie went silent for a few seconds, her brown eyes fixed on a passage of algebra notes. "Did I make you guys upset?"

Momo let out a sigh and shook her head. "No, don't worry about that. I also doubt Todoroki holds any animosity towards you, even if you did call him all sorts of things. Look, I'll give you back your phone now, but only if you apologize to Iida for imposing on him, alright?"

At the mention of getting back her phone, life sparked back into Camie's features. "I promise, for real! But I have no idea how to spell that word!"

"Don't worry about it," Momo chuckled, "I'll help you."

* * *

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] So, I gave her back her phone after five minutes. I felt really bad for taking it, too. I mean, it sounded like a good idea at first, but now I just feel guilty._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] How did your friend take the apology? Camie said he didn't answer her anymore._

 _[Shouto Todoroki] He was very touched by it but decided to return to his rule-abiding self. That means no texting during school hours._

 _[Shouto Todoroki] It's nothing to feel guilty about, she had it coming._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Thank you, that's very reassuring._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] I've been thinking._

 _[Shouto Todoroki] About?_

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] … aren't we really overbearing?_

* * *

"You know, I never really thought about you having friends outside of school, Todoroki." Uraraka remarked. "Don't take it the wrong way, it's just that you aren't the most… sociable."

Todoroki pondered over those words. She had a fair point, being sociable was never up high on his list of priorities. Still, it kinda stung to hear her say it out loud.

"That may be true…" He mumbled to himself.

"Don't worry about it, you have many friends now, right?" Midoriya, like the ray of sunshine and positivity he was, beamed at him widely.

"I once met a student from another school. He saw my uniform and hissed at me. Like a snake." Uraraka told them as she shook her head. "What school are your friends from, Todoroki?"

"Shiketsu High."

"Oh, the ones with the black hats? That's just on the other side of town, right?"

"Apparently, they're 'navy blue'." Todoroki air-quoted Yaoyorozu. "But yeah, those ones."

"They look black to me…" Midoriya hummed.

Todoroki agreed, but the last time he brought it up to Yaoyorozu, she had begun a twenty-minute speech about colour theory and what the differences between navy blue and black were, further going into the topic that 'black' itself was a vague term, since it actually just meant that wavelengths… did - or didn't? – do… something.

He wasn't the biggest physics genius, nor did he need to be. The basics of thermodynamics were enough for him to get through the day.

"Each human perceives colour differently, so it may appear to some people as black, and to others as navy blue." Iida explained expertly, pushing his glasses up to bridge of his nose. "That aside, Shiketsu is a prestigious school, just like U.A.. Its students are not to be underestimated."

Midoriya immediately went into wikipedia-mode. "Definitely! Around forty percent of high-ranking pro-heroes are alumni from Shiketsu, rivalling U.A. in numbers. Additionally, if you consider the number of rescue missi-"

"Woah, Deku, take a step back and take a deep breath." Uraraka interrupted him, motioning her arms in calming circles. "We get it, Shiketsu's famous."

"Ah, sorry." Midoriya rubbed the back of his neck. "Habit."

"We know." The other three occupants of the table answered in near-perfect sync.

"But those two, uh… Utsushimi and Yaomomo, was it? They're also first-years, like us, right?" Midoriya drove on.

"Her name's Yaoyorozu Momo. Yaomomo is her nickname. And yes."

"Yaoyorozu? As in _, the_ Yaoyorozu family?" Iida seemed peaked with interest. "Now that you mention it, she _does_ look similar to them…"

"Woah, you really have friends in high places! That's just like you, Todoroki!" Uraraka exclaimed with awe. "Wait, I need to find out more about this…"

The brunette dug out her phone against Iida's protest. A few seconds later, she showed them her display. "Is this her? She's like, super pretty!"

Sure enough, the picture she had pulled up was of Yaoyorozu, along with two adults he assumed were her parents. Unlike Midoriya, he did not have encyclopaedic knowledge of all pro-heroes in existence, but he had recognized the name when Yaoyorozu had introduced herself the first time. The picture seemed to have been taken at a formal event, judging by their attire.

"...Yeah, that's her." Todoroki finally managed to say, choosing not to comment on what Uraraka had said in the latter half of her statement.

He was aware that Yaoyorozu was attractive, very much so, but… there was just _so much_ more to her than that. However, he didn't feel like trying to explain that to Uraraka.

"Amazing! She looks really nice, too!" She remarked. "Did you meet each other through your families?"

Todoroki had diverted his attention to his water bottle. "…no."

To be honest, he doubted his father cared much for any pro-hero besides All Might, so he wasn't sure if his father even knew who the Yaoyorozu family was.

"Oh, eh, sorry, I didn't mean to pry." Uraraka seemed to catch on to his reluctance to speak about the topic, so she awkwardly tried to laugh it off and change the subject. "So, umhm, end of term exams? How's your studying been going?"

"According to schedule." Iida smirked. "I should have covered everything by tomorrow. After that I will begin intensifying the topics that will be on the test for sure."

"Um, so-so." Midoriya admitted bashfully. "But I'm still more concerned about practicals…"

Practicals, huh? Todoroki had also given the practical portion of their test more thought than the written part, but he assumed it'd be some sort of hero-related task. Maybe some sort of rescue mission?

* * *

Nonetheless, he still had to study for the written portion of the exam.

So, when his phone buzzed, and the display lit up with Yaoyorozu's name, he raised a brow. Didn't she also have exams? She seemed like the type who would study diligently.

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Good morning, I hope I'm not disturbing you. Camie and I are holding a study session at my place later today, and since we should have similar curriculums regardless of schools, I wanted to extend that offer to you._

He stared at the screen for a good minute. Should he accept…? His fingers hovered over the display.

It was a Saturday, and his father had reduced his training regimen because of the upcoming exams. He could afford to go out…

He glanced at the physics book on his table. Actually, now that he thought about it… Yaoyorozu might be able to help him out with a few things…

His phone buzzed again, tearing him out of his thoughts.

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] And, if I'm completely honest, I think I may need a helping hand if I want to succeed in teaching her anything._

A short laugh escaped Todoroki's lips as he typed his reply.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] What time should I come over?_

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Ah!_ _My hero!_ _I told her to come at one, so she'll probably be here by one-thirty._

Seriously… this girl… His heterochromatic eyes were fixated on the third word of her text, his increased pulse not going unnoticed.

He closed his lids and took a deep breath. He could hear her saying it, with a nudge and a wink. And a smile. Her radiating smile.

No, wait, that wasn't the point here.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] I'll be there at one-thirty, then._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Perfect! See you later._

* * *

Yaoyorozu's house, well, mansion, was, well… very grand.

As somebody who lived in a rather traditional Japanese environment, the flamboyance of the western-style decoration and halls was very… overwhelming.

"You… have a very nice house." He offered, admittedly on the lame side.

"You're only saying that because you've only seen the parts we clean every day." Yaoyorozu laughed. "You should see my room, it'll probably change your opinion of that very quickly."

"Somehow, I can't imagine you having a messy room."

"Ah, but it is… There are books and papers all over the place, and every time I clean up, I realize that I put that one book I need at the back of the shelf, or that one graph is at the bottom of the paper stack, and a few hours later everything is all over the place again." She lamented.

Todoroki suppressed a smile. "I think your definition and the common definition of a messy room are two completely different things. I'd say yours sounds like… organized chaos? On the other hand, a normal teenager's messy room… looks like a bomb just went off in it."

She gave him a quizzical glance. "Todoroki, I can't imagine you having a room that looks like 'a bomb just went off in it'. If that were so, my image of you will have been completely shattered."

He shook his head. "I like my room organized and clean, thank you very much. That description is what my friend's mother uses to describe his room."

"Oh, good." She sighed in relief. "But… like a bomb just went off in it? How does that even look like?"

He shrugged. "Beats me. I've never been to his house."

"Oh, that reminds me!" Yaoyorozu suddenly exclaimed, before tilting her head over her shoulder to look at him. "Can I offer you something to drink? We have all sorts of tea, so don't hesitate to ask for your favourite." She hummed in thought. "You like green tea, right?"

"…yes."

* * *

A mug of warm green tea in his hands, courtesy of Yaoyorozu, an open textbook in front of him, and the sudden respect for Aizawa dwelling inside him, courtesy of Utsushimi.

Teaching was _hard_.

Aizawa put up with this every day? No wonder he held class half-draped in his sleeping bag. And yet, Yaoyorozu calmly explained the concept again, using simple terms and drawing a corresponding graph.

And Utsushimi was trying really hard, too. Her blond brows were furrowed deeply with concentration, her hair tied back into a tight ponytail as her eyes followed each and every one of Yaoyorozu's lines.

Her gentle voice rang in the background as he skimmed over the text in his physics textbook, but none of it really got into his head as his brain seemed to only pick up Yaoyorozu's varied explanations of mathematical functions and their derivatives.

Well, he might not do all too well in physics, but he was sure he was going to ace math now.

* * *

Momo took a sip of her tea, glancing at Todoroki out of the corner of her eye. He was currently leaning over the table, pencil pointing at a passage of text in Camie's classical literature textbook, explaining the difference between two idioms.

Camie was listening intently, nodding slowly every now and then.

Momo smiled. It was heart-warming to see Camie put so much effort into it.

Her gaze wandered over the table, landing on Todoroki's textbook. At first glance she could tell it was about physics, and a quick scan of the open page told her it was about wave theory.

She reached across the table and dragged the book closer to herself, charcoal eyes flitting over the formulas on the open page and the ones on the next few pages.

When she looked up again, she caught Todoroki looking at her.

She smiled and held up the book. "Why don't we do some physics after this?"

* * *

 _[Shouto Todoroki] You're a lifesaver. Thanks._

Momo bit her bottom lip as she read the text for a second time. Something welled up inside her, keeping her from replying.

Camie was also hugging her tightly, almost suffocating her, as well as restricting her movements. That might've also had something to do with why she couldn't reply to him. "YaaaaOoooMoooomooooOOOO!" The blonde girl wailed. "Twelfth! I placed twelfth overall in our class! That's the highest ranking I've ever had!"

Momo laughed, at least she tried to, as it came out as a wheeze. "Camie… too… tight…"

Camie loosened her grip on her, eyes darting to her phone. "Tell Todoroki I'm super grateful to him too! I couldn't have done this without my squad fam!"

Momo coughed, filling her lungs with oxygen gain. "Yeah, I will." She assured her friend.

Her fingers tapped away at her screen, her smile solidifying on her face.

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Anytime._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Camie also wanted to express her gratitude._

 _[Shouto Todoroki] She passed?_

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] With flying colours._

 _[Shouto Todoroki] That's good to hear._

* * *

"Wow, since when were you so good at physics?" Midoriya leaned over his desk to catch a glimpse at his score. "96? That hardly counts as your worst subject!"

The green-haired boy snatched up the result sheet and began analyzing it. "Shouldn't your worst subject be biology? And how'd you get a 100 in math?"

Todoroki blinked, looking up from his phone. "I worked really hard. And had a pretty good tutor."

In his books, tutoring Utsushimi counted as hard, strenuous work. But the pay-off was… surprisingly… satisfying.

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] She placed twelfth._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Thank you again for helping me out._

"Ah! What's with your classical lit marks? Why are they so high? Doesn't everybody suck at classical lit?" Midoriya was still buried in his result sheet.

Todoroki allowed himself a small smile.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] Before we all start thanking each other, let's just agree that it was a team effort._

* * *

What was not a team effort, however, was him standing here, next to none other than Inasa Yoarashi.

In retrospect, maybe Todoroki shouldn't have underestimated the practical portion of the exam that much.

They were standing in front of the entrance to the Practical Exam Arena, its gate looming over them. Soon, soon they'd have to face none other than Aizawa.

This was going to be a disaster.

"Yoarashi." He spoke up, looking to his assigned partner. "We should start strategiz-"

Yoarashi held up a hand, effectively interrupting him. "Why include me? Aren't I just in your way?" The taller student scoffed loudly.

Todoroki frowned at that. "When did I ever say anything like that? Besides, if we want to pass this exam, we'll need to work together." He tried phrasing his words calmly, but irritation was building up within him. "So please set aside whatever grudge you have towards me for the sake of our mission."

Todoroki sighed internally. He sounded exactly like Yaoyorozu now. Had she really affected him that much?

Yoarashi laughed humourlessly. Then the gate opened, the wind user taking the initiative to step into the arena. "You don't remember, do you? What happened at the entrance exam?"

"At the entrance exam…?"

 _Yaoyorozu smiled and waved it off. "It's alright. You seemed pretty anxious and weren't really paying attention to anybody, so don't break your head over it."_

"No, I don't." He answered honestly. "And if I offended you in any way, it was not intentional."

Yoarashi continued walking into the arena, Todoroki following a step behind.

"I don't like you." Yoarashi stated simply.

"We've already established that." Todoroki remarked dryly, his patience running thin. He wasn't like Yaoyorozu, he wasn't good at dealing with issues like these in a calm and collected manner.

"Your cold blood, and your cold eyes, filled with cold rage… they're just like your father's."

Todoroki clenched his teeth. That was the last straw. He slammed his fist into the adjacent wall, small spikes of ice surrounding the small crater he created.

"Do. Not. Compare. Me. To. That. Man." He gritted out, anger simmering in his voice. "I'm not him!"

Yoarashi narrowed his eyes. "Sure, you've changed over time, but your eyes… are still exactly the same. You're cold-blooded."

Todoroki stared at the back of the wind user in utter disbelief, his pent-up emotions getting the better of him. "Fine, then I'll just take care of this exam myself."

So be it, he didn't have any use for anyone who was unwilling to cooperate.

He sprinted past Yoarashi, throwing a glare over his shoulder. "Why don't you look for an exit? I'll take care of Mr. Aizawa myself. Make sure you don't get in the way."

* * *

Inasa Yoarashi gaped as his classmate sped past him. Did he just…?

As if! He would show him, he would show Endeavour's son what it meant to be a hot-blooded hero!

He propelled himself forward with his wind, easily catching up to the other boy. "You think you can take on our hot-blooded teacher? Don't make me laugh! Maybe you're the one who should be looking for an exit!"

"Do you really think you're better than me?" Todoroki shot back, venom in his voice. Venom, like a cold-blooded snake.

"Maybe we should find out!" Inasa roared, redirecting his wind towards his classmate. Todoroki was caught off guard, slamming into the wall of a near-by building. Not too long after, flames shot towards him, and instinctively Inasa gestured for his wind to divert them, but the fire still went wild.

 _Shit, wind rises with heat._

Inasa had no choice but to move out of the way, and in that narrow alley, his only choice was to bulldoze through the wall of the adjacent house. The flames shot past him, the heat causing sweat to drip from his forehead.

In the distance, he could hear Todoroki letting out a dry chuckle. "Looks like the laws of nature don't think you can win either."

"Don't screw with me!" Inasa bellowed, sending another gust of wind towards his classmate. Todoroki dodged fluidly, redirecting the wind by putting up an ice wall in front of himself.

He gritted his teeth, ran out into a more exposed area of the fake town, away from the lingering heat in the alley. He summoned another gale from his surroundings, but it suddenly dissipated.

 _Oh fuck._

White bandages shot out from nowhere, slamming his arms into his sides as he was pulled upwards against gravity. He struggled against his bonds, but they wouldn't budge.

On the next rooftop over, Mr. Aizawa stood, slouched, observing the situation.

"Maybe you should have tried communicating instead of fighting each other." Their teacher remarked impassively.

* * *

Todoroki realized that he messed up, big time.

Aizawa was undoubtedly about to come after him, and he had no idea what the layout of this town was.

He darted though the alleys, trying to find a way to still stay in the vicinity, but out of Aizawa's sight.

What the hell was he thinking, spurning on Yoarashi like that? Was he an idiot?

He had given into his anger, and now he was in a tight spot because of it. He leaned against a wall, shrouded in the darkness.

What he did… made him no better than his father. Maybe Yoarashi did have a point. He gritted his teeth together. He told himself that he had to be the better person in this, he knew that from the very beginning, so why, why?

Now Yoarashi had been incapacitated, and there was no way he would find an exit before Aizawa found him.

In other words, he'd need to find some way to free Yoarashi, regroup with him and discuss his initial strategy with him.

All while Aizawa was watching the perimeter like a hawk.

He looked out into the empty streets, fairly certain that Aizawa was not here right now. He created a small amount of ice in his palm, confirming his suspicions.

He took a deep breath. Alright, if he was right, Yoarashi should be just another block away, on the left side. And Aizawa was probably looking for him right now, which meant this would probably be his only chance.

He broke out into a full sprint, down the streets and around the corner, only to realize that he had miscalculated by one street. Not that the situation was unsalvageable, so he went on, slipping into shadows of an adjacent alley.

Still no Aizawa.

Todoroki studied the contraption their teacher had used to confine Yoarashi, and he soon came to the conclusion that he'd only have to cut the rope on the end, then he could lower Yoarashi.

He dashed across the street, to the lamp post Aizawa's bandages were tied to.

He heard Yoarashi gasp in surprise above him, to which he hastily put a finger to his lips and shushed him.

Now came the real challenge… Aizawa's bandages were not something he could burn through, so his next option was to create ice sharp enough to cut it.

It was harder than he'd thought, but after a few minutes, the reinforced fabric finally ripped, allowing Yoarashi to land on solid ground again.

The taller male looked at him perplexedly. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because both of us are idiots." Todoroki whispered while motioning Yoarashi to follow him. "Neither of us can win this alone, so I'll ask you one more time: Why don't we start strategizing?"

Yoarashi furrowed his brows in thought, and for a moment Todoroki feared he was going to continue being stubborn.

* * *

When Inasa had first met Shouto Todoroki during the entrance exams, he marvelled at the boy's raw strength and potential.

But then he saw those eyes and heard that voice. It was like a punch in the gut.

There was another girl there too, who smiled politely and shook his hand at the end of every exercise, but she also seemed distant.

It was then that he finally saw it: How unheroic most of the contestants were. Most of them were pushing their own goals, their own views, the atmosphere was stiff and uncomfortable, and the only thing that counted was whether you were first-placed or not.

He remembered one race in particular, where he had beaten Todoroki by a hair's breadth.

How it felt like when his soul froze over back then.

And over time, over the past three months, he tried looking past it. He tried, but never succeeded. Because whenever he turned his head to the side, looking at Todoroki's left profile, all he saw was Endeavour.

But… he had changed. Inasa was just stubbornly ignoring it, thinking his assessment of the other student was justified when Todoroki lashed out at him just now.

He knew. He knew the Shouto Todoroki from three months ago would never have come back for him.

"…alright."

Todoroki let out a sigh of relief. "Thank god. Okay, this is how things stand right now… We're both outclassed by Aizawa, but he has one weakness we can work with. He has to blink eventually. Additionally, he can only stop a quirk from activating, which means that if we can launch our attack before his quirk activates, it will still head towards him, even if he cancels out our quirks halfway through."

"Like shooting a gun." Inasa concluded.

His classmate nodded. "But first, we need to know his location. Which is why we'll look for a cross-section, then one of us will create a commotion so that he knows where we are."

"So, we'll lure him to where we are."

"Exactly. Our… fight just now gave me an idea." Todoroki went on. "Wind rises with heat. Which is why…"

Inasa watched as Todoroki explained exactly what his plan was, and he swallowed when he was done. "Are you sure you want to entrust something like this to me?" He asked.

"I can't do it, so obviously yes." The shorter student answered coolly. "I'll be counting on you, Yoarashi."

Todoroki's eyes were ablaze with determination to win, even if it meant relying on him… Inasa grinned, clenching his fist. "Leave it to me."

Maybe his blood wasn't that cold, after all.

* * *

Aizawa spotted the sudden anomaly immediately.

Near the centre of the fake town, around the area the large cross-section was located, the wind started howling as it formed into a cyclone.

The teacher had been busy tailing Todoroki, but the student was far sneakier than he'd given him credit for. He furrowed his brows.

Did this mean that Yoarashi managed to free himself? Or perhaps…

He glanced back behind him, continuing the movement pattern Todoroki had been following, and if he extended it…

"Heh." Maybe those two weren't as doomed as he had initially assumed.

He adjusted his goggles. His students were calling him. It was his duty as their teacher to respond that call.

* * *

"IS THIS GOOD ENOUGH?!"

Todoroki gave a hand signal, wondering exactly what kind of lung capacity Yoarashi had to be able to out-scream a weather phenomenon.

The other boy's boisterous laughter carried over the whipping, whirling squeals of the wind.

"GIVE IT YOUR BEST SHOT, TODOROKI!"

That was the signal! Todoroki released a pillar of flames into the cyclone, suddenly illuminating the entire surrounding, even after his quirk was forcibly cancelled out.

The flames multiplied in the wild whirlwind, burning brighter than the sun, forcing even the famous the Eraserhead to squint and look away.

Yoarashi used that instant to redirect the wind in the fire pillar towards their teacher, who avoided it effortlessly as it burrowed through the building behind him.

But at the same time, Todoroki had frozen aver most of the surrounding area, lowering the overall temperature again.

"Yoarashi!" He called out.

"ON IT!"

As Aizawa dodged the fire pillar by going left, his only real option considering the layout of the area, another gust of wind cut the trough the air, carrying something.

Their teacher caught sight of it, but the long, white bandages that had originally held Yoarashi were already wrapping around him.

* * *

"The two of you pass… However, we'll need to work on your damage control." Their teacher told them as they put the handcuff on him.

Todoroki and Yoarashi glanced behind themselves, at the building that had taken a hit, and the streets that cracked under the temperature strain.

As if to emphasize the point, a window shattered in the dead silence.

"…sorry." The two of them mumbled.

"That aside, heroes need to be able to cooperate on the battlefield, regardless of personal feelings or grudges. If Todoroki hadn't turned back, I would have failed both of you without hesitation. Remember, communication is key." Aizawa lectured them.

"I… APOLOGIZE PROFUSELY!" Yoarashi bowed with so much vigour he crashed his head into the ground.

Todoroki sighed. "It's alright. I should be apologizing as well. So, cut that out."

"I still don't really like you, though."

"That's okay."

* * *

 **AN: That awkward moment when this chapter was supposed to be Inasa-centric but Momo and Camie stole the spotlight. Which is also why this is quite a bit longer than I had originally planned…**

 **Anywaaaays, leave a review? (^.^)**

 **~Emi**


	8. Nightfall

**AN: Chronologically, the events of the movie take place here. However, I didn't feel like driving six hours in this sweltering heat just to attend a convention just to watch it, so we're going straight to the next arc.**

 **Should I find a good way to incorporate the events from the movie, I will do so in a later chapter.**

 **Also, a quick response to the guest who said they were hoping Camie would have a personality similar to how I portray her in this fic in the anime: Uhm, no. Read the manga, it's kinda spoiler territory.**

* * *

 _ **The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **VIII. Nightfall**_

Todoroki blinked as the sunlight falling through the trees caught his eye and blinded him momentarily.

It was a quiet afternoon, the rustling of the leaves and the soft splashes of water adding to the calming atmosphere.

The canned drinks in his hands were cool against his skin, almost a bit too cool.

"Ah, Todoroki, thank you for getting us drinks." Yaoyorozu stood up and came over to him to take her and Utsushimi's beverages from him.

"The water temperature's just right." She smiled as she went back over to Utsushimi and sat back down in the soft, green grass of the riverbed and dipped her bare feet into the water.

"She's right, you should totally join us!" Utsushimi added as she threw him a grin over her shoulder. "And thanks for the drink!"

Todoroki looked out over the city scape, the skyline disappearing into the blue sky. He let out a content sigh, removed his shoes and placed them next to Yaoyorozu's, rolled up his trouser legs and settled down next to Yaoyorozu.

"Alrighty, now that we're all here, let's toast to summer!" Utsushimi energetically held out her drink, waiting for the other two to join in.

"Here's to all of us passing all our exams!" Yaoyorozu raised her drink.

Todoroki lifted his arm as well. "Here's to us."

"Campai!"

"Man, summer's already starting out great! What are your guys' plans?" Utsushimi inquired as she splashed her feet in the clear water.

"My mother mentioned we'd be going to Venice at some point." Yaoyorozu told them. "But she made sure the date was set after summer camp."

Utsushimi's mood took an immediate hit. "Oh, yeah, summer camp…" She slumped her head. "Are they really going to make us wake up at five in the morning? Still not cool, man."

"Once we graduate, we'll probably have to wake up that time every day." Yaoyorozu explained, taking a sip of her lemonade.

"That won't be a problem for you two. Real talk here, you're the only two people I know that wake up at that ungodly hour."

Utsushimi's tone suddenly became very solemn. "In fact, you're the only two people I know well enough to know when they wake up."

Silence settled over them, a soft breeze blowing through Utsushimi's hair. "Thank you." She suddenly said, as soft as a whisper. "Like, really, thank you."

"What for?" Todoroki asked. Did they do something special he wasn't aware of?

Utsushimi turned to face the two of them, her brown eyes filled with emotion. "For being my friends."

She turned her gaze back towards the water. "I've always been pretty good at making friends, at least, that's what I thought. But… it was more like, we'd talk to each other during school hours, talk shit about teachers we don't like, laugh about something a classmate did, that kinda stuff. And… that's not really being friends with somebody, is it?"

"Isn't that what we do?" Yaoyorozu pointed out, confusion evident in her voice. "What makes us different?"

Utsushimi smiled. "You two… you're my squad fam. You two are legit. You went through so much trouble because of me, but you still stuck around. You tutored me to the point I actually did better than ever, and… and nobody's ever done so much for me…"

She set her drink down and leaned over Yaoyorozu to take hold of one of each of their hands. "My parents are pretty busy with work, so they're hardly around, but I know that they care about me. Yesterday… when my mom saw my report card, she started crying tears of joy. She was so proud of me."

Her grip on their hands tightened considerably.

When his father had seen his report card, he had merely grunted and handed it back.

"I know I can be annoying and weird," she bit her bottom lip, "so thank you, for being my real friends."

"Camie…" Yaoyorozu whispered. Then the black-haired girl leaned forward, wrapping Utsushimi in an energetic hug, and because the blonde was still holding his hand, he somehow got pulled into the hug as well.

"No, Camie, thank you for being my, no, our friend!" Yaoyorozu replied fervently.

"Y-Yaomomo!" Utsushimi yelped while crying. No, that wasn't it.

The blonde was laughing and crying at the same time.

He felt it too, the way his heart swelled as he awkwardly leaned against Yaoyorozu. The immense gratitude he held for both of them.

His free hand reached around and patted Utsushimi on the back. Todoroki wasn't good at expressing himself, but he knew what he wanted to say this time.

"Thanks." It was merely a whisper, but Yaoyorozu still tilted her head to look at him, unspilled tears glittering in her eyes, a small smile on her lips.

Todoroki couldn't help but smile back, but at the same time, he felt compelled to say something else. "Can I let go now? My spine is being twisted."

She blinked, then she burst out laughing, wriggling a hand free to wipe the tears away. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry, Todoroki!"

The three of them untangled their limbs, Utsushimi giggling as well. "Sorry, my bad."

Todoroki rubbed his back, but there was a small, content smile resting on his face.

* * *

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Camie and I wish you the best of luck for your training camp!_

 _[Shouto Todoroki] Thanks._

* * *

Somehow, it was not unexpected of Aizawa to dump them in the middle of a monster-ridden forest.

But at the same time, Aizawa dumped them in the middle of a monster-ridden forest.

He let out a sigh as he slid into a battle stance.

* * *

Eight, _eight_ hours later they spotted the facility in the distance. Todoroki was in the front, but he could already hear Midoriya hollering the good news to the rest of their classmates further behind.

Many relieved sighs and comments rang about, lightening the mood.

* * *

The next morning, at 5:30 sharp, all of them were standing outside, the morning sun barely showing itself. Todoroki couldn't help but recall Utsushimi's dismayed comment about waking up so early.

She was probably still sleeping right now, considering that their summer camp was scheduled for a later date.

"Alright, listen up." Aizawa greeted them lazily. "This is what you'll be doing…"

* * *

He felt exhausted. Using his fire side so much was still hard on him after longer periods of times, especially if he had to activate both of his powers at once. He rolled his shoulders to loosen them a bit.

"Ah, can somebody help us light the fire over here?" Ashido called out.

"I'll do it." He announced, kneeling down next to the fire pit.

"Thanks!" Uraraka exclaimed jovially.

A small smile crept onto his face. This feeling… wasn't so bad.

* * *

The next morning, they were allowed to sleep a bit longer. His aching muscles welcomed it, but that didn't make the pain go away.

But that was the point of all this, wasn't it? To push yourself past your limits.

With a deep breath, he slammed his left hand to the ground, creating another wave of flames.

* * *

"Hey, you two! Stop talking! We're making the ultimate meat and potato stew!" Iida bellowed across the open space, making Midoriya grimace sheepishly.

"Ah, we should concentrate on making food." He admitted.

Todoroki shrugged and continued his own tasks. If Midoriya insisted on sticking his nose into other people's business, then there was nothing he could do about it.

He hoped that he could at least help him out with his advice.

* * *

A test of courage was one thing, a test of courage while partnered with Bakugou was another.

"Quit telling me what to do!" The blonde roared at him. "I don't need your goddamn opinion."

"I'm trying to be helpful." Todoroki sighed in response.

I don't need you to be helpfu-uuul!" Bakugou's speech suddenly wavered as something jumped out of the adjacent bush, also catching Todoroki off-guard.

Ragdoll gave them both unimpressed looks. "You're no fun." She muttered before disappearing back into the shrubbery.

No fun? Todoroki could've sworn his heart stopped for a moment…

"As I was saying, I don't need your help." Bakugou cleared his throat awkwardly, trying to keep his dignity intact.

Todoroki wasn't buying it. "Uh-huh, sure."

"Shut your trap, half-n'-half bastard."

* * *

"IS EVERYONE HERE?!" Inasa bellowed through his sleeve, trying not to inhale the rising gas.

"I think so." His classmate coughed. "They're out cold, though."

Inasa gritted his teeth. "Alright! Everybody, get away from here, I'll clear the gas!"

"Yoarashi, are you sure?" One of the class B students asked. "All of us are exhausted from the day's training. We can help you."

He looked at her, the way her teal eyes brimmed with determination. Her blood must've been boiling.

"Okay. You stay behind, the rest look for shelter!" He ordered.

"I'll stay, too!" The one with the iron quirk announced. "If you take care of the gas, Kendou and I will take out the sucker who's doing this!" He said fervently.

Inasa nodded firmly. "I'll make the gas go upwards. I don't know how long I can keep it there, so I'll also give you two a speed boost. Do your best! PLUS ULTRA!"

Kendou and Tetsutetsu smiled in acknowledgement. "Plus Ultra!" They both joined in.

"Yoarashi!" Another 1-B student, Awase, approached him. "When you're done, do you think you can help me carry some people? I think some of the other's got caught up in the gas on the side of the forest."

"You got it!" He agreed without hesitation.

* * *

If they ever went anywhere without Midoriya getting hurt, Todoroki was going to start questioning reality.

First the mysterious gas, then the weird villain, then the announcement that they were after Bakugou, then Shouji showing up with a hysterical Midoriya followed by a rampaging Tokoyami.

Add an uncooperative Bakugou on top of all that and you get the situation Todoroki found himself in right now.

Not to mention the unconscious 1-B student he had been carrying around.

Somehow things had worked out for the better, leading to Midoriya explaining the plan to all of them, making full use of each of their abilities.

From there on, things seemed to go well, they even managed to meet up with Uraraka and Asui.

Until they noticed that Bakugou was gone.

* * *

"We can't let them escape!"

Everything was happening too fast, the villain showing up, capturing both Bakugou and Tokoyami, then suddenly disappearing again.

Their group broke into a sprint, chasing after him, but he only seemed to get further away.

"He's too fast! Damnit!" Todoroki cursed.

"Listen to me!" Midoriya spoke up suddenly. "Uraraka, make us float! Asui, fling us into the air! Shouji, I'll trust you to carry us! Once we've caught up, Uraraka will release us!"

"Deku!" Uraraka cut in worriedly. "Not with those wounds!"

"I have to agree with her." Todoroki added. "You stay her-"

He couldn't finish his sentence, not with the determination burning in Midoriya's eyes.

* * *

After their crash landing, everything passed in a blur.

His mind was reeling.

His body was aching, his limbs begging for mercy, the adrenaline in his bloodstream suppressing the pain, but he had to do this.

His fingers stretched out, reaching for the small, turquoise marble.

Almost there.

Almost.

His fingertips practically brushed against the round object's surface.

And then he hit the ground, hands empty.

* * *

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] I understand if you need to be alone right now, but remember, we're here for you if you need us. Just say the word and we'll be right there._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] And… Please, please don't do anything reckless._

* * *

Todoroki let out a long sigh, stood up and walked around his room restlessly. He couldn't stay in here anymore, it was too crammed.

Without saying anything, he left the house, walking around the streets aimlessly. Maybe he should go to the hospital. Check on Midoriya. See whether that idiot was awake yet.

His feet changed direction abruptly, heading right towards the looming white building.

His thoughts were a scrambled mess right now.

So close. So, so goddamn close. Just a few more centimetres, just another second, that was all he would've needed.

Up till now, they always managed to beat back the villains. Somehow, they always did it. Good prevailed over evil. So why? Why this time?

He angrily kicked some rubble aside. Why did the villains win this time?

He never realized exactly what kind of danger they were in, because he thought they were invincible. They had All Might, after all.

It frustrated him so, so badly. Just when they thought they managed to turn the tables around, this shit happened. He glared at the rubble angrily.

But it was innocent. The rubble couldn't do anything about the fact that he had been too slow, too weak to take back Bakugou when he was right within grasp.

He let out an involuntary groan.

A hand settled itself on his shoulder gently, tearing him out of his thoughts. He whipped around to face whoever it was, only to find Yaoyorozu standing there, a solemn look on her face.

She looked at him and held something out to him wordlessly. A coffee.

Slowly, not trusting himself, he took it from her, the warmth immediately coursing through his fingers.

He looked back at her. "Isn't this yours?"

"It was, but you look like you need it more than me right now. It may be a bit too sweet for your tastes, but it's still coffee. " She said softly.

He glanced back at the warm beverage in his hands. "Why are you here?"

"I happened to see you. You never replied to my message, so Camie and I decided to give you some space, but… I couldn't just ignore you when I saw you." She explained, her voice still soft.

"I see." He mumbled in response. "Thanks."

Her presence was enough to make a fraction of the frustration disappear, allowing him to clear his thoughts at least a little bit.

He took a sip of the coffee. She was right, it was too sweet for his tastes. But it still offered some kind of comfort.

"Do you… want to sit down for a bit?" She asked him gently.

He glanced at her. "I was heading to the hospital. Midoriya broke all of his bones again."

"Oh, I see. In that case, I will take my lea-" She was about to turn around and go, but his free hand shot out and grabbed hold of her sleeve.

"Actually, if you have time, the hospital café has good coffee, too. At least let me repay you."

"…Alright." She said. Her hands took hold of the one he still had clenched around the fabric of her sleeve, and she gave it a comforting squeeze alongside a reassuring smile.

She didn't say anything further for the rest of the short walk to the hospital, just as she accepted the coffee he held out to her with nothing more than a short 'thank you'.

He appreciated her silence. He didn't want to dwell on what happened during the training camp, and for a few minutes he could pretend that he was just getting coffee with a friend.

They stood next to each other in the hospital lobby, only the sound of Yaoyorozu gently blowing on her hot drink drifting between them.

Right, he was here to visit Midoriya.

"…do you want me to wait for you?" She asked him.

He considered it. "Yeah, that'd be nice." He finally whispered.

* * *

Midoriya still wasn't awake.

Neither were Hagakure or Jirou.

Yoarashi was being kept at the hospital to observe his concussion. Apparently, the hothead had had a run-in with a Noumu in the forest.

He ran into Kirishima in the hallway, the redhead's frustration even greater than his own.

There was nothing. Nothing either one of them could do.

Yaoyorozu was waiting for him in the lobby.

* * *

"…Is there nothing I can do?" He muttered to himself.

"We're teenagers." Yaoyorozu replied. "Even you, Todoroki, regardless of your accomplishments, are still only a teenager."

It was the truth, he knew that deep down, and he knew that Yaoyorozu only meant for the best. Yet, he felt anger rising within him. Not at Yaoyorozu, but at himself. He felt weak, useless, worthless.

"I can see it in your eyes." She went on solemnly. "That you would do anything to rectify the situation. Even if it was something reckless. But… that's just the kind of person you are. Me chiding you for it wouldn't change anything, and it isn't a bad overall trait."

She inhaled sharply. "I have no idea what kind of turmoil you're going through right now, and I can't begin to imagine what it must feel like. However!" She clasped his hand in hers. "I do worry about you, and so does Camie. That's why, even if you do something reckless, please consider your own safety first!" She pleaded with him, her words heartfelt.

He felt guilty, for making her worry. It wasn't the first time, either. His heart clenched.

Todoroki looked at their entwined hands. "Yaoyorozu, I trust you." He told her. "So if I do something reckless, I'll trust you to stop me."

Her eyes widened, her jaw dropped a few centimetres, and she seemed at a loss for words.

Once she regained her composure, she let out a sigh. "Alright."

* * *

" _-e villains saw that and thought they had an opening, then I believe they are very short-sighted."_ Aizawa's voice rang from the television.

Todoroki wiped the sweat from his bow and took a large gulp of water. He couldn't sleep. There was no way he could sleep.

Midoriya had woken up earlier that day, but he was a complete emotional wreck. He could hardly communicate with them.

Even Kirishima nearly broke down in the hospital room. The rest of their class had been there as well, sans the three injured ones and… Bakugou.

He set the water bottle back down and turned his attention to the boxing bag suspended from the ceiling. There were too many pent-up emotions he had to get rid of right now.

His sister was a heavy sleeper, and his father had been called out suddenly. A small part of him hoped it had something to do with Bakugou, but it was fairly unreasonable.

He paused between punches, listening to his teacher's voice on TV. Even Aizawa, laid-back Aizawa, was having a hard time dealing with this.

He took a deep breath. Right. Left. Right. Right. Left.

At some point, he decided to switch off the TV. It was too distracting.

Left. Left. Right. Left.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Again.

Again.

He didn't dare look at the clock, it was already way past his usual sleeping hour.

And then, his phone pinged, destroying the silence. He ignored it.

Until it pinged again, escalating into a cacophonous melody as his notifications blew up. Mere minutes later, he heard a commotion from upstairs, followed by his sister stumbling down the stairs and towards the living room.

"Shouto!" She called out frantically. "Shouto, Dad's on TV! All Might too!"

What? He picked up his phone, scanning through the myriad of hasty messages he received, most of them being from Midoriya, Kirishima and… Yaoyorozu.

…All Might…

…Endeavour…

…villains…

…Bakugou…

…Noumus…

" _It's unbelievable! So many pro-heroes have come together in Camino, preparing a sneak attack during the press conference! This is it! They will prevail over the villains!"_ An excited newscaster's voice boomed in the living room.

Camino? Was that where….?

He rushed into the living room, his sister already settled on the couch watching the screen intently.

Camino, that was only a train ride away, right?

If he… If he…

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Don't do it._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] If you don't reply to me within ten minutes, I'm going to assume the worst and drag you back with my own two hands._

His hands trembled. He took a deep breath. He looked back at the TV screen, as the pro-heroes fought off Noumus, his father amongst them.

All Might was there, too.

He needed to clear his mind.

"Shouto?" His sister called his name worriedly. "What are you doing?"

"I'm stepping out for a bit. I need some fresh air." He responded.

The cold night air combined with the drops of sweat caused a shiver to run over his skin. He looked back at Yaoyorozu's messages.

He felt the urge to… to go there. To see for himself. He looked at his free hand, trembling anxiously.

But… she was right. She always was.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] I'm at home. My sister's here as well._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Thank goodness._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Please make sure your classmates don't do anything reckless either._

He nearly laughed. Usually, that would be easier said than done.

He was most worried about Kirishima and Midoriya in that aspect, but from what he could gather, the former had begrudgingly entrusted the pro-heroes with Bakugou's rescue, and the latter was watching the news with his mother.

His heartbeat slowed down again, ringing in his ears in a calmer pace than before.

He stepped back into the house, joining Fuyumi in the living room.

 _[Shouto Todoroki] I will, thank you._

* * *

Momo froze as she watched the scene. She had her phone lying next to her, but she couldn't bring herself to reach for it.

All Might… The Symbol Of Peace… No…

She sat there in stunned silence, as tears rolled down her cheeks.

* * *

It was like being punched in the gut, flung into an adjacent building, slammed into the ground and then waking up without any bruises but all of the pain. Only ten times worse.

His father was upset. Upset was an understatement, but he didn't want to delve into it any deeper.

He remembered Aizawa calling the house phone. Bakugou was safe, rescued by retired hero Gran Torino, even if said hero took a large amount of damage in return.

But they were both alive and would probably make a full recovery.

Aizawa didn't say anything about All Might.

* * *

Bakugou didn't say anything. He just stared out of the window.

Even as Kirishima thanked all the gods above that he was safe, Bakugou's face remained perfectly blank. There was no scowl, no sneer, nothing.

Midoriya joined them at the hospital room as well, equally grateful that his childhood friend was safe. But it didn't hide the elephant in the room.

All Might… was retired now.

The number one hero… had stepped down.

They may have won the fight, but the villains were the ones who won the overall battle.

* * *

The subject weighed heavily on their entire class, and events seemed to rush by him as he hardly payed attention to them. He vaguely remembered Yaoyorozu and Utsushimi dropping by to see how he was doing, but he had sent them away with an apology.

He appreciated them both, but he… just needed some time.

Todoroki wiped the sweat from his brow as he fixated another tatami mat in place. He was almost done taking care of the flooring of his dorm room, just a few more square metres to go.

Once he'd set up all of his stuff, he'd call it a day.

He glanced at his phone to check the time, his eyes falling on the unread message from Yaoyorozu that had been sitting in his inbox since yesterday.

Maybe he should answer her…

After he was done fixing up his room. He'll definitely reply to her after that.

* * *

 **AN: Let's be real here… Without Momo, these two arcs would have ended catastrophically, which is why my somewhat lame attempt to squeeze this into the story is… somewhat lame. If you think my solution to these two arcs was weird, this is why:**

 **When I first began writing this story, I had really only envisioned the Provisional License Exam arc, and was considering eliminating the Training camp and Camino arcs from the story altogether…**

 **But that didn't work out, because the consequences of All Might's retirement are too dominant story elements that I can't recreate without these two arcs…**

 **I considered many things, like Awase merging his cell phone to the Noumu, or Momo planting a bug on a police officer, but all these actions would be too OOC even for my own standards, because it just doesn't match their personalities.**

 **And, despite the angsty wafts here and there, this is supposed to be a fluffy story about two socially awkward rich kids falling in love, so I can't have half of the cast dying on me halfway through.**

 **All that aside, we can now get into the really good stuff! Next time: The Provisional License Exam arc!**

 **And if you bothered to read all this, please think about leaving a review!**

 **~Emi**


	9. Interlude: Vice-Prez

**AN: This is an interlude chapter. These chapters take place outside of the main narrative following Todoroki and Yaoyorozu.**

 **Basically, this is an exposition dump so that I don't have to explain too much during the action scenes that take place in the next chapter.** **Also, I'm super uncreative when it comes to naming characters.**

* * *

 _ **Interlude: Momo Yaoyorozu - "Vice-Prez"**_

"Moura, let me help you carry those papers." Momo offered politely.

"Thanks." Moura nodded gratefully while handing her the top half of the stack. "It's going to be a long day again, isn't it?"

Momo shrugged. "I guess. I heard we were going to cover some more advanced tactics today. Judging by these print-outs, they aren't as advanced as I thought."

Moura chuckled at that. "That's only because you are so intelligent, Yaoyorozu. Not all of us were blessed with brain power like yours."

"That may be true, but brain power isn't everything here. It's about how you make use of everything you are provided with to the fullest extent." Momo readjusted the papers so that she could turn the one on top around with her free hand. "Hmm… I'm sure I read about this one in a book some time ago…"

"You're already starting to sound like a teacher." Moura said as he mirrored her actions and looked at the other side of the worksheets. "In fact, I think you probably know more about this than our teachers do."

"Even so," Momo pointed out. "I only know the theory. Putting it in to practice is an entirely different story, especially when so many people are involved in such a large-scale area. Unforeseen circumstances happen especially in situations like these."

"That's what we'll be practising during summer camp, but I'm sure you can do it, leader."

"I'm not even sure why I was appointed leader. I'm only vice-president, after all." Momo sighed. "Shouldn't that title have gone to you, Moura?"

"What do you mean? I believe that as class president and vice-president, we are on equal footing, with each our own strengths and weaknesses. Out of the two of us, you are the one more suitable for this role." Moura explained matter-of-factly.

"I'm flattered, thank you." She smiled. "In that case, I will do my best."

* * *

"Yaoyorozu, have you prepared the list already?" Mr. Tanaka asked her during the short break between lessons.

She glanced up at him and set her pencil down. "Yes, Mr. Tanaka. If you wish to look over it, I have it with me today."

"Ah, as efficient as ever, I see. Since you already have it with you, I will take a look at it."

She nodded and pulled and the folder out of her bag, handing her teacher the two sheets at the top. "I decided on four-man teams that should cover all ranges and roles. With a bit of practice and coordination, I think these should work out just fine."

He glanced over them, raising his brows. "I'm a bit surprised you decided to put Utsushimi on a different team than yourself."

Momo tilted her head, confused. "Why would that surprise you? Her quirk is better on the field than in my group, which focuses on command."

"Well, she's your friend, isn't she? People usually choose people they trust in situations like this." Her teacher answered hesitantly.

"Yes, I do trust Camie. That's why I put her on a scouting team, I have a lot of faith in her. She can create diversions when necessary and she's very agile. Combined with the others' quirks, I believe the team to be very balanced.' Momo argued.

"Ah, of course, my apologies." Mr. Tanaka squirmed a bit, before clearing his throat. "So, you put yourself and Moura on the same team to act as a command centre? Why Kasoku and Kagami, though?"

"Kasoku is a great ranged support, giving us an offensive edge. Kagami is very quick-witted, and his quirk is good for melee combat, especially after all the training he's been doing. As such we'll be able to function as a field team without a hitch if necessary."

Mr. Tanaka put on a strained smile. "I see. It seems all your decisions were made with a lot of a thought. I'll leave presenting the line-up to you, then."

He handed back the sheets and left without another word.

"Man, you might've been a bit harsh on him." Camie leaned over. "He looked like he was about to faint."

"Was I really that harsh?" Momo questioned dejectedly. "I was only bringing up the facts…"

"It's okay though, it's just Tanaka." Camie propped her head on her palm and read over the list. "You're putting me on a team with Shishikura? I high key wasn't expecting that."

"His quirk works well for crowd control." Momo explained. "And you should really show more respect towards our teacher."

"Hmm, I guess." She hummed is response. "So, this is basically what we'll be doing during summer camp, right?"

"Yes, alongside quirk training. Being able to cooperate and function as a team is as vital, if not more than boasting individual strength as a hero. Rescue and damage control missions rely heavily on using your environment and everybody's abilities to the best extent. It doesn't matter if you can beat up ten villains if you can't save a single life."

Camie rested her chin on the table's surface. "Y'know, every time you start that speech, I tell myself to stop you, but I just… can't? I end up listening to it fully anyway." She sighed.

Momo nodded approvingly. "Good, it is a lesson that is not to simply be dismissed."

"Yes, yes vice-prez."

Momo raised a brow. "It's not funny just because it rhymes. And why does everyone insist on calling me that? Somebody might mistake it for my hero name at some point…"

"Hmmm, pro-hero 'Vice-Prez'. Doesn't sound all that shabby." Camie stuck out her tongue.

Momo just gave her arm a light-hearted slap.

* * *

"Hey, vice-prez."

Momo looked up from her worksheet. "Yes, Daichi?"

Daichi rubbed the back of his neck. "I heard from Camie, about the teams you made? She mentioned that I was on the same team as Maya, and well, we… aren't on the best terms, so I wondered whether you could make some changes?"

Momo set her eraser aside and gave her classmate her full attention. "Daichi, I want you to consider something. You are a pro-hero, assigned to a site where a disaster just took place. There are people that need to be rescued, but even with your super-human strength you cannot reach them. What do you do?"

"Is this supposed to be some kind of trick question?"

"No, no it's not. Just answer the question."

"Well, …" he shifted his weight onto his other foot. " …I'd ask somebody else whose quirk is more suitable for help."

"Correct. Now, what if this person happens to be somebody you are not on good terms with? Will you abandon the victims because of a small disagreement?" She put all her seriousness into every word. This was something all of them needed to understand.

Daichi grimaced. "Well, no, of course not, but isn't this different?"

"How so?" She looked him straight in the eye. "How is training to become a hero different from performing hero duties?"

He seemed at a loss for words, pulling his lips into a thin line instead.

"Daichi, I'm not asking you to be her best friend. I'm asking you to be able to do your duties as a hero alongside her. That is something you have in common, after all. You are both heroes, and this isn't one-sided either. She will have to put her personal feelings aside as well when the situation calls for it."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I guess you're right. Sorry, vice-prez."

"If you understand, then it's alright." She offered a small smile.

* * *

"Can't say I didn't see that coming." Kasoku drawled from her other side, erasing an answer she had just written down. "Those two are always at each other's throats."

Momo glanced at the brunette girl. "I know, but there's no point in me interfering between them, it's something they need to resolve on their own."

"I heard they've been this way since middle school. They seem to make a competition out of everything, even cleaning the hallway." Kasoku shrugged.

"Well, I guess in a way they motivate each other, then." Momo paraphrased their relationship. "I can't really complain about that."

"It's up to them in the end. I'm just glad you chose me to be on your team." Kasoku grinned. "It's gonna be hella sweet."

Momo chuckled at her pertness. It was definitely infectious. "I'm glad to hear that. I was a bit worried you would mind not being out on the field. And how do all of you know about the team assignments? I haven't even presented them to you yet…"

"Ah, Camie mentioned it during lunch while you and Moura were busy with class rep stuff."

"Of course she did."

Kasoku laughed. "But that aside, I really don't mind. I'm guessing we'll be the commando team that takes the high ground, right? That means I'll probably be in charge of sniping, right?" She imitated the gesture of taking aim with a confident smirk.

"Yes, it's as you say." Momo nodded. "You'll be our primary source of offense."

"Nice, I get to play with support items _and_ be on the same team as the vice-prez. I really couldn't ask for more." She leaned back into her chair, crossing her arms behind her head. "I'll make sure not to let you down."

Momo smiled. "I appreciate it, thank you."

* * *

"As some of you might have heard, the principal is planning to put more focus on training hero teams from now on. We, as class 1-1, have been given the honour of being the test run of this project, introducing a new curriculum for the summer camp and the next semester." Mr. Tanaka announced. "As such, I'll leave the presentation of the teams to Yaoyorozu."

Momo stood up and walked to the front of the classroom. "As Mr. Tanaka has already said, we'll be divided into teams from now on. Please remember that this still means that you will be working on your individual strengths. The goal of this project is to increase your communication skills and cooperativeness. Please do your best."

She turned to the blackboard. "I have chosen to divide us into five teams of four members each, taking your quirks and the way you utilize them into account. By basic balance principle, these are the teams…" She began drawing a roster, writing her classmates' names into their designated spaces. Once she was done, she put the chalk down and turned back to face the class.

"I'm aware that some of you might be surprised by or disagree with your teammates, but remember that once you are a pro, you will have to work alongside others, even strangers, regardless of whether you like them or not." She paused.

"If there are no further questions, we will begin training in these teams during summer camp." Momo finished her speech.

* * *

"Vice-prez."

Momo was about to leave the school building, the voice catching her off-guard. "Kagami? Is something the matter?"

Kagami was slouched against a pillar by the entrance, looking at her with uncertain eyes. "Why did you pick me for your team?"

Momo watched him, his self-doubt evident. "I hope it's not too much of a burden on you, Kagami, but I would appreciate your analytical skills on my team. Two brains work better than one, after all, and since we are the commando centre, we'll need all the brainpower we can get. Moura and Kasoku have defence and offense covered, but your combat abilities are nothing to sneeze at either."

He remained silent, eyes trained to the ground. "Are you sure I won't hold you back?"

Momo shook her head. "Of course you won't. That's the whole point of being in a team, to cover each other's weaknesses and maximise your strengths. Look forward, okay, Kagami?"

He didn't answer, so she turned to head home.

"Hey, vice-prez," He spoke up suddenly.

She looked at him over her shoulder.

His grip tightened around the strap of his bag. "…thanks."

She waved it off and smiled. "No problem. Just do your best, okay?"

His head snapped upwards, green eyes swirling with emotions. "I-I will!"

* * *

 **AN: Somebody once hc'd that Shiketsu would be a bit military-oriented.**

 **I'll leave you in the dark about their quirks for now, since there's still one I have to tweak a bit around…**

 **I know it's a short chapter, but the next one is currently at 6k+ words and I'm sticking to the decision not to split it up. I'm also really excited to get it out so I'll probably be uploading it pretty soon :)**

 **Show this interlude some love and leave a review!**

 **~Emi**


	10. Earthquake

**AN: Fun fact: apparently Camie uses gyaru slang in the original. The more you know.**

 **But at this point I think I've already changed her character too much to really delve into that, but it's an interesting fact if you ask me.**

* * *

 **Because I can't figure out a way to incorporate the Shiketsu student's quirks without it sounding forced, I'll just put a list here:**

 **Kasoku – Acceleration: She can accelerate objects she touches with all five fingers. She's come around to using her quirk in combination with a rifle.**

 **Maya – Particle Shift: She can turn herself and everything she touches into small particles and transport them to a nearby location. Basically teleportation.**

 **Daichi – Power Up: Your standard time-dependent strength increase.**

 **Kagami – Mirror: By making eye contact with somebody, he can reverse their perceptions – left becomes right, up becomes down etc... Good for melee combat.**

* * *

 _ **The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **IX. Earthquake**_

It was 6:37 AM, the sun casting long shadows on the streets as it rose slowly.

Momo turned around the corner, keeping her pace and breathing even and steady.

She ran past the riverbed without pausing, stray rays of light reflecting on the water's surface as she passed by.

* * *

"I know he never really talked much, but this table feels so empty without Todoroki." Camie rested her chin on the table's surface and glanced at Momo. "Don't you think so, too?"

Momo sighed and closed her book. She had been staring at the same page for the past five minutes, unable to read any of the words due to her clogged mind.

They were sitting at the café in the mall, and the two of them had subconsciously chosen to sit in a way that would allow a third person to fit with ease.

It was only when the waiter asked when their friend would arrive that they realized what they had done.

"It is." She admitted. "But ever since he moved into the dorms, he hardly gets any free time. I can't blame them for taking precautions with everything that's happened."

"I know, I know, but this was gonna be our week, you know?" Camie pouted. "Next week we're off to our summer camp, and because of the incident with U.A. they changed the location last minute… Now I dunno what to pack for."

"Well, I doubt we'll be going anywhere with a different climate, so I guess packing for a forest-like or swampy environment would be the best option." Momo explained.

Camie shifted, resting her chin on her hands. "After that, you're off to Venice with your parents and I'll have to do my summer homework. Not cool, not cool."

Momo smiled slightly at that. "Well, theoretically we're meeting up now to do said summer homework together."

"Yaomomo, it's the third week of summer vacation." The blonde deadpanned. "We've got infinitely better things to do than summer homework."

"And yet, we're sitting here drinking coffee."

"Argh, don't remind me. I had this super wack plan involving Todoroki's quirk and a swimming pool, but I guess we won't be able to do that anymore." She lamented.

Momo raised a brow. "A plan involving _what_ and a what?"

"Does it really matter at this point?" Camie sat up and leaned into her chair. "I feel so guilty right now. After everything's that happened, there's nothing we can do for him."

Her sadness resonated with Momo, making her grimace. "We'll have to give him time, it's all we can do right now." She stirred her coffee absentmindedly. "At least he's answering my messages. His classmate made a full recovery already, it seems. He also mentioned that their teacher is making them work on their quirks."

"Hmmmm… Training might not be so bad. It serves as a bit off distraction, I guess." Camie hummed. "It's still pretty messed up, though."

"Wait a minute," Momo interrupted her. "you're trying to distract me from what you said earlier. Something about using a certain somebody's quirk for something?"

"Eh, well, you see, Yaomomo, uhm… it's not problematic to use your quirk in your daily life as long as nobody finds out about it, right? I mean, you do it all the time with small stuff when you help people out, right?"

Momo narrowed her eyes. "Your point being?"

Camie grinned sheepishly. "I thought… I'd be okay to plan the most epic, bombastic, rad birthday party of all time. It involved you and fireworks as well, to be honest."

Momo fell silent at that. Camie's birthday fell into the week they had summer camp, so the original plan was to celebrate it in the few days after the camp, before Momo left for Venice.

But now that Todoroki was residing in the dorms, that plan would most likely not work out anymore. From what he told her, it seemed they got some time off on weekends, but that was it.

Against her better judgement, she also felt a bit let down. Her mother didn't think much of festivities, and her own birthday parties were usually strict, formal events. The sound of Camie's birthday party… had been an unexpected spot of light.

"That sounds a bit much." She chose to comment. "Maybe we can do without the fireworks?"

"No! The fireworks are essential!" Camie stood up abruptly, slamming her palms onto the table.

A few other patrons of the café began whispering, not that it seemed to bother her.

"Okay, okay, the fireworks are essential, just sit down again." Momo gave in. Fireworks were nice.

Her friend grinned smugly and sat back down. "How about we reschedule it to your birthday then? If it's this far in advance, Todoroki can surely get a day off, right?"

That… wasn't such a bad idea.

Convincing her parents would be… troublesome, but it would work out. Somehow.

She smiled, feeling a bit better. "Yeah, let's do that. I'll ask Todoroki later."

* * *

"Camie, do you really need that many bug sprays?" Momo reached into her friend's shopping basket and inspected the different cans.

"I don't want any creepy-crawlies anywhere in my vicinity." The blonde girl shuddered. "I'd rather take a can too many than too few along."

"I understand one, but not five." Momo picked up a few of the cans and put them back into the shelf. "Besides, we're staying at an inn."

"But what if you guys have something really messed up planned for us? In fact, you telling me not to do this might just mean I should do it…" Camie looked at her suspiciously.

"Stop spawning conspiracy theories in your mind and think about ways to improve your quirk's capacity. Or increase your agility." Momo shook her head as they left the aisle.

Camie furrowed her brows in thought, her eyes lighting up when she seemed to have an idea.

"Before you ask," Momo interrupted her, "hairspray doesn't do either of those."

Her friend went quiet again.

* * *

 _[? ? ?]_ _Yo, It's your gurl Camie!_ _I swiped your number off Yaomomo's phone, so don't tell her (owo)_

 _[? ? ?] Just wanted to remind you to hit us up when you have time ;)_

 _[Shouto Todoroki] Right. Sorry about your birthday party._

 _[Camie Utsushimi] No biggie (^.^) We'll just turn Yaomomo's bday into the most epic shit ever_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] I'm counting on you for that btw :P_

 _[Shouto Todoroki] …okay. Good luck for your training camp._

 _[Camie Utsushimi] Wait do you know something? ? ? Do you? ? ?(O.O)_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] Did Yaomomo tell you about the horrors she's gonna put us through? (ówò)_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] Tell_ _me! ! ! Plzzzz (T.T)_

 _[Shouto Todoroki] I don't know what you're talking about._

 _[Camie Utsushimi] LIAR_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] You totally know something! ! !_

 _[Shouto Todoroki] I really don't know anything._

 _[Camie Utsushimi] I don't believe you_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] I'll be watching you_

 _[Camie Utsushimi] Just you wait_

* * *

Training camp was just another word for hell, Camie was sure of it as she fell onto her futon. Her legs were aching from wading through high waters the entire day and she just knew she was going to catch a cold by the end of this week.

"Yaomomo…" she groaned, blindly reaching for her surroundings.

"She's discussing some things with Moura outside." Kasoku mumbled while stuffing another cookie into her mouth. "You want one?"

Camie glanced up at her, then lifted a tired arm to help herself to a cookie. "Thanks."

"Uuuuughhhh, it's still the first day and I want to go home already." Maya slumped onto the ground as well. "Why did we need to crawl through bushes for three hours straight? If I need to get somewhere quickly, I use my quirk."

"Not all of us have a quirk as convenient as yours. It's probably the reason why you're the laziest out of all of us." Kasoku teased with a small smile.

Maya narrowed her eyes and threw a pillow at her, which Kasoku dodged effortlessly. "Look, you can't even throw a pillow without missi-" The next one hit her in the face, making her drop the packet of cookies.

"Noooooooo!" Camie exclaimed, diving after them. "The cookies!"

But as her aching body screamed, the cookies narrowly slipped past her fingertips, landing on the ground.

"How cruel." Kasoku seethed, scowling at Maya. "You will pay for your unjust deeds!"

"Bring it on! It's not my fault you can't even dodge a pillow!" The redhead jumped up and stuck out her tongue.

"I will have you know that my family has passed down the secret techniques of the ultimate pillow attack to me. You should know better than to face the Kasoku techniques on your own." She slid into a basic stance, picking up the nearest pillow.

"Wait, don't fight!" Camie reached out to stop them. They were comrades, they couldn't fight! "How can you do this?!" She shouted dramatically. "How can you forget about our fallen brethren?!" Camie scooped up the cookie crumbs and held it out to them. "How could you?!"

Kasoku made a pained expression and averted her gaze. "I'm sorry, I wasn't strong enough to protect those I care about…"

"Exactly!" Maya pointed an accusing finger at her. "People like her are nothing but a liability!"

"Fighting amongst ourselves is not the solution!" Camie cried out, pushing herself to her feet and stepping between them. "How do you think… How do you think they feel?! How do you think I feel?!"

"Camie…" Kasoku gasped.

"Camie, I'm sorry." Maya said quietly. "But I will never forgive her!" She roared a battle cry, her pillow impacting on the brunette's abdomen.

"Didn't feel a thing!" She retorted, flinging the pillow back across the room. Maya took a step back as she caught it. "Hey, no using your quirk!"

"I didn't." Kasoku grinned. "It seems you're just that weak."

"Bullshit." Maya activated her quirk, reappearing in front of Kasoku and tackling her to the ground, tickling her mercilessly.

"Bwuhahahaha, oh my god, Maya get off!" she giggled uncontrollably as she tried to swat the girl away. "Camie, help me!"

Camie looked away. "I'm sorry… you will have to pass this trial on your own." She said solemnly.

Kasoku's eyes widened. "Nooooo, you traitor!"

"Nobody's coming to your rescue!" Maya laughed maniacally, only to stop abruptly as the screen door opened, revealing Yaomomo.

She stood in the door frame for a few seconds before Maya exclaimed loudly. "Oh no, it's the Commander! I can't face her!"

"Commander!" Kasoku practically cried. "You've come to my rescue!"

Yaomomo hid her laughter behind her palm before clearing her throat. "It's good to know all of you still have so much energy after today, but you're a bit noisy." She smiled apologetically. "But I guess I can let Mr. Tanaka and Moura know that the training regimen today can be improved for the next few days. You can stay up a bit more, but be a bit quieter, okay?"

As she disappeared back into the hallway after waving innocently, a sense of dread came over the three girls.

Kasoku stretched her hand out towards the screen door. "No… Commander… why have you betrayed us?"

* * *

"Sorry about that, I've asked them to keep it down." Momo apologized when she got back.

"Well, they've quieted down now, so let's continue. There's one more point on the itinerary… What do you think about getting your provisional licenses?"

Momo tilted her head slightly. "Provisional licenses? Are you sure we're ready?"

Mr. Tanaka fiddled with his fingers nervously. "The principal suggested it. Apparently U.A. is sending their first-years… and you know how he is…"

"While I still don't think much of his reasons, I can't shoot down the idea completely. With the villains becoming bolder and bolder lately, it might not be a bad idea." Moura offered his opinion.

"True… I just wish he didn't outright state his motivations…" Momo sighed.

Things made more sense now, especially with Todoroki's increased training schedule over summer break. If they were preparing for the exams, then he and his classmates were doing the right thing by making use of every minute.

"So… you think you should go for it?" Their teacher looked at them with hopeful eyes.

"He's going to sulk if we don't, isn't he?" Moura asked tiredly.

"Probably." Mr. Tanaka answered.

Momo drummed her fingers on the table surface. "If we do, we're going to have to amp up training even further. U.A. and Shiketsu are the only two schools reckless enough to send first-years." She rubbed her temples with her other hand.

"The others won't like the sound of that." Moura commented. "Even the idea of obtaining their licenses won't motivate them enough."

"Of course, there's always the option of not telling them until the last moment…" Momo mumbled to herself. "…but that's a bit underhanded…"

"It'd be the best option, as much as I hate to say it." Moura pondered. "Let's just see how well they do during this week and decide at the end."

Mr. Tanaka nodded. "Okay, of course."

* * *

"Alright, this tactic relies heavily on you two working together." Moura explained. "It also needs a good sense of trust between you two."

Daichi frowned and glanced between Momo and Moura. "I'm sorry, it's very difficult to take either of you seriously when you're doing that." He stated apologetically.

"Consider this training of your mental resistance." Momo said while taking another bite of cake, dropping another matryoshka into the basket Kasoku was carrying.

Moura merely nodded in agreement, his hair extending further before retracting again.

Momo swallowed the next bit of cake. Because of the prospect of the provisional license exam, she and Moura had decided to mercilessly push on with the plans for the individual teams, but in order not to fall behind themselves, they had somehow agreed on their current state of multi-tasking.

She and Moura were working on strengthening their quirks, while Kasoku was carrying the multitude of creations Momo made in order to increase her strength. Kagami was busy running laps through the obstacle-ridden environment in order to help with his stamina and agility.

And Team Two… was panting hard, looking at them and awaiting instructions. The four of them were sprawled on the ground, Daichi the only one even still responding.

Maya only lifted her arm tiredly to signal Moura to continue talking.

"So… theoretically, Maya can transport others with her quirk, even if it does slow her down, however, it makes other people nauseous if they aren't used to it." Moura cleared his throat. "Basically, if the two of you work together, it would mean that Maya could get Daichi into the battle zone, leave an impact, and get out again. Once you've trained enough, it would allow you to become akin to a pesky fly for your opponents."

"Pesky fly? I'm pretty sure the term for that is 'poking'." Kasoku remarked as she wiped some sweat from her brow.

"I get what you're saying… But wouldn't it be more efficient to have me do it alone?" Maya asked.

"Can you shatter a rock? Because Daichi can." Momo wiped some crumbs away from her mouth before taking out a bottle of high-fat pudding.

Maya grimaced. "Fine, I see your point."

* * *

"I'm pretty sure this is what dying feels like." Maya groaned into her pillow. "I've never thrown up from using my quirk before…"

"My arms feel like they're going to fall off." Kasoku yawned.

"Less talking, more sleeping…" Camie mumbled into her pillow.

* * *

Kagami steeled his resolve. The vice-prez was doing her own training today and she had entrusted him with this very important task. He couldn't let her down!

Even… even if he was terrible at speaking to people, he would do this!

"Kagami, you look like you're about to wet yourself." Kasoku poked him in the shoulder. "You sure you're okay?"

"Y-yes, I'm fine." He insisted.

"If you say so…" She didn't sound very convinced. "All you need to do is play mind games with Camie. She will try to trick you with her illusions and you try to trick her by messing with her senses. Whoever scores ten hits first gets to eat the loser's dessert."

Kagami turned to her. "Dessert? We're fighting over dessert?" he asked, slightly in disbelief.

Kasoku shrugged. "You'd be surprised how much dessert can motivate her."

"Okay… what about you?"

"I'll be playing target practice with Shishikura. It will help both of us with our quirks."

"Oh, okay."

* * *

Kagami could still feel the area Camie had slammed her heel into after catching him off-guard. Going to bed without dessert also kind of sucked.

Daichi was still leaning over the toilet and throwing up.

Wasn't this training camp a bit harsh…?

* * *

"Stay in formation! Further to the left! Make sure to pay attention to each other!"

"Circle around the tree to catch the enemy off-guard!"

"Make sure to use everything available to you. If there's a tree or rock in the vicinity, do not hesitate to use it as cover!"

"One more time!"

* * *

"Somewhere in this area, there's an enemy assailant. You don't know anything about them, but I can give you directions on how to escape. You'll need to trust me for this exercise, but also judge the situation for yourselves. Whoever get's taken out by the enemy has to clean the toilets!"

Kasoku hummed as she loaded her airsoft rifle, Yaomomo's voice echoing in the background as she explained the rules.

With a grin, she disappeared into the woods.

* * *

"Team Three is busy scrubbing the toilets." Camie remarked casually in the bath. Kasoku let herself into the water as well and laughed.

* * *

"Gnnhahhnghgh…"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Maya asked her.

"It means I can't feel my anything." Camie stated in an apathic tone.

"Oh yeah? What did you do today?"

"Acrobatics… I think."

* * *

"Woah, Yaomomo, you look terrible."

Momo turned to Camie. "Thanks, you too."

"What happened?"

Momo went over last night's events in her head, the long-winded discussion with her teachers and the unexpected phone call from their principle.

"You don't want to know." She yawned, running a hand through her hair.

Slowly, the rest of her class assembled. Once everyone was there, she stood up. "Please listen to me, I have an announcement to make."

The chatter died down, all eyes on her. "As you may have noticed, the training so far has been quite a bit harsher than you may have expected. We apologize for that." She bowed slightly. "However, we didn't do it without reason. For those of you who didn't know, there will be a provisional license exam at the beginning of the next semester. It is unheard of that first-years participate, but our principal thinks that we should."

"I bet the first-years from U.A. are participating." Daichi commented.

"I will neither deny nor confirm that statement." Momo went on. "But after observing you these past few days, Moura and I have decided to go through with it. Is anybody vehemently against it?"

A few mumbles and heads shaking went through the room.

"Alright, then we will emerge victorious."

* * *

"It feels like it's been years since we've seen each other." Camie stretched her arms over her head. "It's good to have the gang back together again."

Todoroki merely nodded while sipping on his strawberry milk.

"How have you been?" Momo inquired, glancing at him.

"Okay. I've been spending a lot of time at tech support lately." He rubbed his forehead. "It wouldn't be so bad, but there's only so much Hatsume I can take at a time."

Camie laughed at that. "Girl troubles?" She asked slyly.

"No, she just talks, and talks, and then she's suddenly put some mysterious object on you and there's a high chance it will explode any moment, or it's going to almost break your leg." His voice grew quieter as his eyebrows furrowed. "Whatever it is, visiting her is always accompanied by pain and frustration. I'm pretty sure Midoriya is traumatized already."

"That…" Momo smiled shakily. "…sounds complicated."

"I don't want to think about it." He sighed. "How was your training camp?"

"Good." Momo chirped.

"Hell." Camie lamented.

There was a moment of silence, before Camie shook her head. "I still can't feel my legs, you know? I get that we're going for those license thingies, but was this much torture really necessary?"

"License? Is your class participating in the provisional license exam as well?" Todoroki perked with interest.

"Ah, yes, I was going to tell you." Momo brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "I only found out about it during the training camp, though."

"Oh. We also only heard about recently."

"I don't wanna think about it." Camie whined. "I still have nightmares about 'that', y'know?"

"Do I really want to know what she's talking about?"

"No," Momo shook her head with a sigh. "No, you don't."

* * *

"Todo-'bro'-ki!" A female voice called out, followed by a black form and blonde curls, slinging an arm over his shoulder. "We got assigned to the same arena! Isn't that awesome?!"

Utsushimi grinned widely at him while Todoroki glanced at her impassively. "Please don't call me that."

"Dude, no faiiir. Yaomomo made the exact same face when I suggested it to her." Utsushimi detached herself from him and pouted. "Actually, hers looked a bit more like this."

Utsushimi made a grimace that he was sure would never be found anywhere near Yaoyorozu's face.

The blonde's attention shifted to something else behind him. "Hey, it's Midori-'yeah' and Ii-'d-mpfhmph-"

Before she could finish that sentence, another hand clomped over mouth, belonging to none other than Yaoyorozu, who was shielding her face with the rim of her hat. When she looked up, there was a light embarrassed blush on her cheeks. "I told you not to greet them like that, Camie." She hissed under her breath.

"Sorry." She went on in a normal volume, an apologetic smile on her face. "I had to take care of some things and she somehow escaped my field of vision."

"It's fine, nothing happened." Todoroki reassured her.

"Well, something should have happened." Another voice joined the conversation. "I can't believe you guys are actually speaking to U.A. vermin."

Yaoyorozu's smile grew a bit stiffer. "Shishikura, say something along those lines one more time and you'll be taking over cleaning duty on your own for an entire week."

The purple-haired boy in question froze up. "S-sorry, vice-prez." He mumbled hastily as he sunk deeper into his coat, disappearing behind his collar.

She shook her head and looked past Todoroki. When he glanced over his shoulder as well, he realized that their little interactions had garnered the attention of the rest of his class. Even Aizawa was looking over at them with a pensive frown.

"Please, as vice-president of this class, let me apologize to all of you on behalf of anything my classmates say." Yaoyorozu bowed her head.

A walking mop of hair joined them, also bowing. "As class president, I'd like to join in on that apology."

"Really, it's okay…" Uraraka stepped forward, but was quickly overtaken by Iida, who had rushed to the front lines. "As class president of 1-A, we humbly accept your apology, even if it was not necessary." He responded fervently. "Tenya Iida, pleased to make your acquaintance."

"I believe we've already met, but for formality's sake, Momo Yaoyorozu." She shook Iida's outstretched hand gracefully.

"Nagamasa Moura, it's important to build good relationships during our time as students." The heavily-haired student next to Yaoyorozu introduced himself next.

"Of course!" Iida reciprocated. "However, today, we will be healthy rivals."

Yaoyorozu smiled. "Well put, Iida. Let us all do our best!"

"Now, our class will have to take our leave, we still have a few things to prepare, as I'm sure you do too." Moura announced. He handed Yaoyorozu a stack of papers. "Hand these out to the others and tell them to sign and return it to me."

She nodded, turning back to Todoroki. "It seems I'll have to go now. Again, I must apologize that you had to hear what Camie said. I'm just glad I could stop her before she could say anything she'd really regret."

Todoroki raised a brow. "That bad?"

She hid her lower face behind the stack of papers in her hands. "Worse. And she spent the entire bus ride thinking those up, too." She lamented.

Todoroki couldn't help but chuckle.

"Anyway, I'll be on my way now. I hope both of our classes will be successful in obtaining our licenses. See you."

"Yeah, see you."

Yaoyorozu grabbed onto Utsushimi's sleeve and began dragging her along, but it didn't stop the blonde from waving at them.

Todoroki waved back until they disappeared into the distance.

The moment the Shiketsu students were out of earshot, he felt two looming presences from behind him.

"Gggggnnnnnhhhhhhh." Mineta gnawed on his glove. "Why is life so unfair?! Why does Todoroki get all the hot chicks?!"

Next to him, Kaminari had his arms crossed, attempting to look dignified. "Girls… in tight, black leather… maybe I should have attended Shiketsu instead?" He mumbled under his breath.

A few seconds later, the two of them were on the floor, groaning in pain, courtesy of Jirou and Asui.

"All that aside…" Mr. Aizawa spoke up. "The black-haired girl… Momo Yaoyorozu…"

"You know her, teach'?" Hagakure asked.

"Pray you don't run into her on the battlefield. She's no pushover." Aizawa seemed to grimace behind his scarf.

Yoarashi suddenly gasped. "I thought she looked familiar!" He bellowed. "She's the chick who tied with me, right?!"

"What? No way…"

"Tied with Yoarashi? So, she's around his and Todoroki's level?"

"Wait… if she took the U.A. entrance exams, why is she attending Shiketsu?" Midoriya brought up. He turned to Todoroki. "Do you know?"

"She declined upon being rescheduled for a re-match with Yoarashi." Aizawa elaborated. "She didn't give us any specific reason, though."

Todoroki adjusted the strap of his shoulder. "I do, but it's not that important." He answered Midoriya.

How was he supposed to explain that she, essentially, did because she didn't want to hurt Yoarashi's feelings? Without any context, that'd make her sound like a terrible person.

"You know her, Todoroki?" Ashido tilted her head in curiosity.

"We're friends."

"Is this really okay, though? They're our enemies today." She went on.

"It's okay. We've agreed to give it our all."

"What a wholesome friendship!" Kirishima dug his face into the crook of his elbow. Was he… crying?

"Ah, but that also means you know some of their quirks, right?" Jirou cut in from behind.

Todoroki looked at the crowd of students in front of the arena. "I do, but I'm not sure how that's going to help us against all of them. Like Mr. Aizawa said, I suggest avoiding her."

Truth be told, Todoroki wasn't sure how Yaoyorozu was going to do this. She was confident in herself, and it was clear that she had some kind of leader-status in her class.

But combat-wise, he'd only had a few light, quirkless spars with her before, and those didn't really amount to anything since she spent half of those analysing the way he shifted his weight as he moved.

He really didn't know what to expect, but judging from Utsushimi's reaction to their training camp, it wouldn't be pretty.

* * *

"…We're completely surrounded." Midoriya remarked.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious." Ashido sighed.

Todoroki turned his head, swerving his gaze in order to estimate how to deal with this the best way.

Bakugou had run off on his own, followed by Kirishima and Kaminari.

The rest of the class, including himself, had decided to stick together. He was seriously reconsidering that right now, since he couldn't use his quirk effectively with so many people around, especially if he knew nothing about the enemies' abilities.

"Everyone!" Midoriya exclaimed. "Let's do this! Let's show them… just what class 1-A can do!"

* * *

"Class 1-1!" Momo and Moura stood in front of their class. "All the other schools are about to go after U.A.."

"Alright, let's crush them together!" Daichi grinned. "Let's go!"

"No, not yet." Momo cut in. "There's one student we need to look out for. His quirk is extremely versatile, and he has mastered using it to a commendable extent. It's in our interest to let him pass instead of facing off against him."

"So, what's the plan then?" Maya raised her hand.

"We'll split up into our teams. Don't try throwing your balls randomly, that's only a waste of time. The best way to pass this portion of the exam is to restrain your enemy or catch them off-guard and simply touch the ball to the target. Remember what you learned during summer camp." Moura explained.

"So, who's this student that's got you worried, vice-prez?" Kasoku inquired.

Momo glanced at her. "It's the one named Yoarashi. You saw what he did during the sports festival. Now picture that but with small, lightweight orange balls that the majority of the participants will be holding rather loosely."

Kasoku laughed nervously. "Point taken."

"So, we wait for him to pass, and possibly take out many participants as well, before stepping in." Kagami added quietly.

Their classmates nodded slowly. Good. Momo still remembered Inasa Yoarashi from the U.A. entrance exam. She saw how much he had improved when the sports festival came around. And although Todoroki hardly spoke about his classmates, the one or two sentences he had said about Yoarashi showed his begrudging respect for his abilities.

"Alright, this arena is split up into different sections. Team Five will head to the urban area in the west, Team Four will head to the rocky area in the east, Team Three will head to the industrial area in the south-east and Team Two and Team One will remain here. We're out of time, so start moving. Further details will be explained over your earpieces." Momo swept her arm outwards, to which everyone started moving.

"Team Two, you will be joining the students in the U.A. hunt." They nodded and disappeared into the mass of heroes-in-training.

"As for us," she turned to her teammates. "We'll look for a place with a good vantage point."

Once she finished her speech, a breeze blew through her hair, brushing a few strands into her face.

"It has begun."

* * *

"PLUS ULTRA! IT'S TIME FOR A HOT-BLOODED BATTLE!"

Todoroki held his ears as Yoarashi starting shouting. A few seconds later, the wind in their environment began to accelerate, whirring into life as their surrounding began to become obscured.

"Yoarashi, wait!" Midoriya tried to reach out to him, but it was too late. The cutting wind picked up their opponents' balls and lifted them up, all while Yoarashi was grinning like a madman. He began laughing jovially as he flicked his wrist.

"WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE!"

The hurricane around them was dyed orange as the balls blurred away into lines, followed by a multitude of beeps and small specks of red.

All of Yoarashi's targets suddenly lit up blue, but he was still laughing. "Alright, let the battle commence!" He fist-pumped into the air.

Sero patted him on the back slowly. "Dude, your battle's already over."

"Huh, what? Wait, seriously?" Yoarashi's smile fell from his face.

* * *

"What the hell?" Kasoku peered over the rock they were hiding behind. "That was insane… He took out over 100 students by himself… Thank god we have you on our side, vice-prez."

Momo looked through her binoculars and assessed the situation. "He eliminated more than I expected. On the bright side, he'll be leaving the battlefield now."

"To all teams: Yoarashi is off the battlefield, remember your training, watch out for each other, and win. The key to victory is crowd control, don't forget it." She spoke into her earpiece.

After getting confirmations from all teams, she nodded towards her own teammates. "We'll make things easier for Team Two here. Once they've passed we'll assist any other teams that need us."

"Gotcha'." Kasoku set up her rifle and adjusted the barrel diameter to fit the orange balls before finding a good position.

She gave a thumbs up when she was ready.

Momo went back to her binoculars. "Let's see… the tall guy in the yellow suit?"

Kasoku scoffed. "Almost too easy."

"Let's play it safe for now. We don't know how they'll react to our attacks." Momo replied.

In the background, Kagami began talking to some of the other teams while taking notes.

Kasoku rolled her shoulder and took aim. "Aren't you friends with some U.A. guy? Camie mentioned it once." She placed her fifth finger onto the orange ball, dropping it into the chamber, counteracting the recoil by adjusting her posture.

It shot out across the field, hitting its target.

Momo put a finger to her ear. "Maya, tall yellow guy in the middle. Kasoku's sending another shot over now."

" _Roger."_

"Yes, I am friends with a guy from U.A., but we don't talk about this kind of school stuff. Camie says it's boring." She answered the brunette's question. "Okay, that's one down for Maya. Let's see…"

"What about the girl with the cool bob?" Kasoku asked, right before the ground shook around said girl. "Ah, wait, my bad."

"Soundwaves." Momo explained. "There are easier targets. Further in the front, blue and white, black cape, He's going to turn to the side now."

"Found him." Kasoku sang as she loaded her rifle once more.

* * *

Sato's sudden elimination had taken all of them by surprise, putting them all on guard. It was only briefly, but Todoroki saw something flicker right before his third target had been hit.

A female form wearing a navy-blue hat.

A large volley of balls came towards them from the other side, to which he put up an ice wall, followed by Sero leaping up and reflecting all the balls with the non-adhesive side of his tape.

In the corner of his eye, he caught the flicker again. He shot flames towards it, watching as the red-haired girl materialized with a scowl.

"I'm retreating!" She suddenly said, dissipating into nothingness again, right before Asui could land a hit on her.

"What the-" He quickly had to redirect his attention as something approached them from the other side.

* * *

"Black cape. Repeat after me, Maya, black cape."

" _Ah, sorry, sorry, I thought we were still targeting the U.A. students."_

Momo sighed. "Have you found the correct one yet? Let Daichi take this one."

" _Gotcha'."_

She rubbed her temples. That was close, if Todoroki had spotted her a second earlier that might have not ended so well. His instincts were scarily on point. The frog girl was also too agile for Maya to hold her own against her.

"That's one down for Daichi. The other two have procured one each." Kagami relayed from behind. "Team Three seems most likely to pass first, they said they found a good opportunity to ambush a group of enemies."

"That's good to hear. The other two teams?"

"Team Four is taking a detour because they encountered some problems. Team Five has one each already."

"Team Four, huh? I hope Shishikura didn't pick a fight with anybody again…" Momo lamented. "Hmmm… there's a rock-like looking guy amidst the U.A. students. Can you do it, Kasoku?"

"You got it, I'm almost out of ammo, though."

"Don't worry about that." Moura said as his hair settled a few balls down on the ground next to her. "I have you covered."

"Sweet. Thanks, prez."

"Alright, let's get Team Two through this." Momo peered back through her binoculars.

* * *

Koji's target shattered on impact, weakly blinking red before it faded.

"It's the same as Sato earlier!" Uraraka announced, already pushing Koji aside, only to have one of her targets shattered instead.

Todoroki reacted instantaneously, putting up an ice wall in the direction the shots came from. Just as it manifested, Todoroki caught the flicker again.

"Look out!" He shouted, but not in time. Three people began moving simultaneously, but not in time to stop the shorter girl from touching her balls to the targets.

She grinned as all her targets lit up blue before she disappeared again.

* * *

"The more I watch her, the more I think her quirk is… I dunno … A double-bladed sword?" Kasoku mused as she readjusted her aim.

"How come?" Momo asked as she searched the crowd for more potential targets. Team Two had gotten through completely, as had Team Three. Team Five was still missing three people but would be done pretty soon as well.

"Have you ever thought abut how she could be quite literally 'gone with the wind?'"

Momo face-palmed. "How long have you been holding that one in?"

Kasoku laughed. "Longer than you think."

The ground suddenly started to rumble. "Ah, it's the pretty boy from Ketsubutsu!" Kasoku exclaimed.

"Everyone, make sure not to lose anything, we need to get down from here!" Momo commanded. "The same goes for all the teams still on the field! Make sure not to lose each other!"

* * *

Todoroki watched as the ground around him began to shake and crack, splitting in certain parts already.

He could make out Midoriya's frantic voice in the distance, but by the time he evaded all the cracks he was already somewhere else, on his own.

* * *

Himiko Toga was not liking this so far. She had infiltrated this place so that she could get closer to Izuku, because he was supposed to be here.

There was no fun in this at all… Where was her sweet Izuku?

The earthquake had really made a mess out of the area. Great, now she was lost, stuck in this totally un-cute person whose appearance she had copied. Ahh, she wanted somebody cuter…

A flash of black peeked in the corner of her eye. A girl, with blonde hair and a nice catsuit.

Ah yes, this would do. This was very cute indeed…

* * *

"Camie, where are you? Camie?" Momo frowned at the lack of response. Should she check the GPS?

No, Camie could handle herself, she had to take care of the others first.

"Kagami, what's the status?" She turned to him.

"Team Three and Team Five were unaffected by the earthquake. They've both managed to capture enough enemy students and pass during the commotion. Team Two is already back at the waiting room." He relayed.

"So it's just us and Team Four, which got split up." Momo ran a hand through her hair. "We've only gotten feedback from two members of Team Four so far. Camie and Shishikura are MIA."

"What's the plan?" Kasoku angled her head upwards. "Do we head over to their location?"

"Yes. Once the two of them pass, we will begin searching for targets for ourselves." Momo took out a device from her pouch. "As for Camie and Shishikura…"

She had put a tracker on Camie for… reasons but was a bit surprised to see how far away she was.

"What is it, Yaoyorozu? You seem surprised." Moura inquired.

"I'm probably overthinking this…" She shook her head. "If Camie doesn't respond by the time you three have passed, I'll go look for her."

* * *

Todoroki decided to run along the outskirts of the exam area, hoping to shake off the students who had chosen him as their prey. His eyes flitted around, looking for any sign of anybody hidden amongst the debris, waiting to ambush him.

He still needed one more person, dammit. He had managed to freeze one of his pursuers in place, the others escaping due to one of them having some kind of melt ability.

He scanned his surroundings once more, wondering whether he would find anybody in this abandoned area in time to still be amongst the first 100 students. Gritting his teeth, he realized that loosing his pursuers may have been an unwise decision.

Finally, a silhouette dashed across the landscape in the corner of his eye. This was it, his last chance! Without hesitation, he created an icy path towards the person, skidding across it to catch up to them.

However, as he got closer, he saw her.

The silhouette… was Yaoyorozu. What was she doing here?

His stomach knotted uncomfortably as he decided to follow her.

* * *

Momo glanced at her locator and her surroundings in intervals, ducking behind larger objects as she got closer to Camie's location. She hadn't moved in quite a while… was she perhaps confined?

She could only guess for now, so she sped up a bit more. The only three people from her class who hadn't passed yet were Camie, Shishikura and herself, and ironically enough the three of them were the only ones who left their assigned teams.

She was going to have a serious word with them later.

" _Yaoyorozu, what's the situation?"_ Moura's voice asked her over her earpiece.

"I haven't found her yet, but she should be nearby." Momo responded.

The dot grew closer and closer, and the only thing Momo could think about was how empty the surroundings were.

She got closer to the arena boundaries and frowned. There was only really rubble, the Ketsubutsu kid's attack really did this place in.

"Camie?" She called out tentatively, stepping over the rubble. "Where are you?"

"Cam-" Her heart stopped for a split-second.

What? What was that? Was that…?

She descended the stony, rocky slope and approached the motionless form of black on the ground. "Camie?" She gripped the person, turning them on their back, their caramel blonde hair stained dark red. "Camie!"

Warm liquid ran along Momo's fingers, and when she inspected them, they were dyed crimson. Immediately, her mind ran through all the steps to take during a situation like this, her hands searching for the wound and putting pressure on it to halt the bleeding.

How long had she been here? Who had done this?

Confusion and anger were swirling up within her, her heartbeat pounding in her ears. Step one, remain calm. Remain calm. REMAIN CALM.

Step two, … What was step two again? Did step two matter? Camie was bleeding out, she should skip right to step three, right?

"-ozu."

No, no, step two was important, right?! What was it?!

"Yaoyorozu!"

She snapped her head towards the voice calling her name. "Todo… roki? Why are you here? What about-"

* * *

"That's not important right now." He cut her off harshly. "What happened here?"

"She stopped responding, but I didn't think too much of it at first, but then her coordinates didn't change, so I was worried about her and went to look for her and…" Yaoyorozu rattled down under her breath, trailing off towards the end.

Her eyes were still wide as saucers, a slight tremble going through her arms as they put more pressure on the red blotch on Utsushimi's abdomen. "I need to tell the others!" She suddenly jerked upwards.

"Move." He told her. "You notify somebody, I'll take care of the wound." He put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "It's alright, I'm here."

Shakily, her hands lifted away, immediately replaced by Todoroki's. He glanced at Utsushimi's face, noting that she was deathly pale. How on earth did something like this happen? Who would be so heartless just to leave her here like this?

Even if this happened by accident, wouldn't your first thought be to notify somebody? Call an ambulance? Anything?

Momo took a deep breath, her hand reaching to a small button near her ear.

 _So that's how they were communicating?_

Momo opened her mouth to say something, but suddenly paused. Her face drained of all colour, and she gulped audibly. "I-is that so?" She suddenly spoke up, her voice surprisingly even. "T-Tell her not to do anything reckless again, o-okay?... Yes, yes, I'll do my best. Thank you for telling me."

Her hand sunk down again, her expression filling with disbelief, incomprehension, anguish and… fear.

"Yaoyorozu," He urged her. "What happened?"

She blinked, a bead of sweat trickling down the side of her face. "Todoroki, thank you." She said softly as she knelt back down next to him. "But there are only ten places left, and if you're still missing a person…" Her voice was hoarse as she lifted her arm, holding out her target to him.

"I'll take care of things from here, so please, continue on with the exam, while you still have the chance to." She kept her voice even, but he could tell something was off.

"Forget it. Not happening." He snapped at her, anger rising within him.

She whipped around her head to meet his gaze, the confliction in her eyes clear as day, visibly taken aback by his sudden outburst.

Did she have any idea what she was saying? What she was insinuating? Did she honestly belief he would choose the exam, this exam he could take again at any given time, over her and Utsushimi?!

Didn't she know…

Didn't she know how important she was?

Not just her, but Utsushimi too?

He inhaled sharply. "If things were the other way around, me telling you to go on, would you accept that offer? Would you, Yaoyorozu?" He was aware that his bitterness, anger and disappointment leaked into his voice, but he _needed_ her to understand.

She didn't answer.

"There you have it." He sighed. "Now get those thoughts out of your head and tell me what happened, because I'm not going anywhere until you do."

Her eyes softened as tears started spilling from them silently. "I'm sorry… I know I always talk big… but when it comes down to it… I don't know what to do…" She confessed quietly.

"Yaoyorozu, you need to breathe. Take a deep breath, then let it out slowly again. Clear your mind." He told her.

She followed his orders, tears still falling from her eyes.

"Better?"

She nodded. "I'm sorry, you're right, I'm not thinking straight." She took another deep, albeit shaky, breath. "Let me dress her wound before she loses more blood."

Her trembling hand reached to her arm, where she started producing bandages and pulling them out. After creating all necessary things, she motioned for him to let her take care of things.

He let her, averting his gaze as she began to peel Utsushimi's bloody uniform off her skin.

"Moura told me that Camie just got back. Apparently, she strayed from her designated path, but still managed to take out two other students, so now she's waiting in the lobby with our other classmates." She began explaining.

"What?! But isn't she right here?"

"I'm fairly certain – no – I'm one hundred percent sure that this here is the _real_ Camie." Yaoyorozu went on. "She has the earpiece I gave to everyone in our class, and she still has that one random curl in her hair that she was complaining about this morning. Additionally, I planted a GPS on her because I knew we would lose sight of her eventually." Her voice was blank, almost drifting into nothingness. "I just didn't think things would end up like this…"

She cleared her throat. "You can turn around now."

His mind had been reeling at her words, and he caught onto what she was insinuating, and suddenly her choice to not take any action made sense. He turned around, his eyes meeting hers.

They were slightly swollen, wet streaks mingled with a smidge of red on her cheek. She had pulled Camie towards herself, nestling her against her upper body, one hand feeling for a pulse.

"She needs medical attention." She said. "But… there's another pressing matter at hand."

Todoroki grimaced. "If the goal was to take her out during the exam, why still parade around as her in the lobby? Why let her take credit for your victory?"

"Exactly. My conclusion is that it probably isn't a student from another school, but…"

"A villain."

She nodded grimly. "With all the things that've happened lately, it's not implausible. And if that's the case, we need to check the area for more victims. Additionally, we can't let them know that we're aware of their presence."

Todoroki shook his head disapprovingly. "You're telling me that you were planning to do all this on your own? With an injured person, on top of that?"

She looked away, ashamed. "I didn't want to involve you in this. This exam is important."

He knelt down in front of her, close enough that he could hear Utsushimi's ragged breaths. "Look at me."

When she did, he put his hands on her shoulders. "Listen to me, because we don't have much time and because I'm only going to say this once." Her expression was strained, but she nodded.

"The exam may be important, but it'll never be as important as you."

Another wave of tears spilled from her eyes, and he wiped them away with his knuckles, the only part of his hands that wasn't stained with blood. "Don't cry, it's not like you. You're the strong, talented vice-president of Shiketsu's hero course class 1-1. Act like it."

It looked pained, but she managed a smile. "Thank you, Todoroki."

"Good. Now, let's secure the perimeter and get Utsushimi to a doctor."

* * *

Izuku felt confused as Utsushimi waved at him from across the room.

Ever since the encounter with her in the arena, he couldn't help but feel like something was off.

She was behaving as if they were meeting for the first time, which was… weird. Didn't she even greet him when they arrived just a few hours earlier?

* * *

Momo was emotionally exhausted, her pulse still higher than she'd like it to be. It was such a distressing situation, and her heart plummeted at the realization that Todoroki had gone through this ordeal countless times already.

She held Camie a little closer as she followed Todoroki through the rubble. They stuck to the outskirts of the arena, just in case the second phase kicked off before they got out.

Somehow, she had managed to convince Todoroki to let her be the one who'd carry Camie, arguing that his quirk would serve as better defence for all three of them should anything happen, but in reality, she wanted to be there to make sure that Camie was still breathing, that her skin was still warm and that she was still… alive.

She didn't want to know what would've happened if Todoroki hadn't been there to snap her out of her stupor.

Someday, somehow, she'd make it up to him.

But first, there was a villain they needed to catch.

* * *

If the situation hadn't been so dire, she might have laughed at the baffled expressions of the proctors who were waiting at the door for the last stragglers to arrive.

But could she blame them? Camie, Todoroki and herself were covered in blood, not exactly the sight you'd expect from three examinees.

"What happened?" One of the proctors finally managed to ask.

Momo straightened her posture. "I'd like to talk to the person in charge."

* * *

Todoroki slumped against the wall in front of the infirmary, sliding down until he was sitting on the cold ground. Exhaustion came over him, lulling him to fall asleep.

"Todoroki!" Aizawa's voice tore him out of his half-asleep state. "Todoroki, are you alright?"

His teacher knelt down in front of him, hands gripping his arms in worry.

"It's not my blood." He answered tiredly.

Aizawa sighed in relief. "Can you tell me what happened?"

Todoroki looked up at his homeroom teacher. "I'm going to use my quirk now. I'll tell you if you can cancel it out."

"What's this about?"

"I'm sorry, I need to make sure you're really Mr. Aizawa."

The long-haired man sighed. "Fine."

When all was said and done, Todoroki glanced to each side, then whispered in a low voice. "There's probably a villain in the lobby with the other students."

Aizawa visibly froze up. "Are you sure?"

Todoroki nodded. "They currently look like a female student from Shiketsu by the name of Camie Utsushimi. Dark blonde hair, black catsuit."

"Todoroki, if this information is false… it will have serious repercussions."

"I know, but I have proof."

"I'll need to see this proof."

In that moment, the door to the infirmary opened with Yaoyorozu and Mera stepping out. The older man caught sight of Aizawa.

"Eraserhead, perfect timing." Mera said, an oddly serious tone to his voice. "I need you to do me a favour."

His teacher stood up to face Mera, his brows set in a serious manner. "Yes?"

"Miss Yaoyorozu here has explained some… rather unsettling circumstances to me. If this got out, it'd cause another public scandal we can't afford right now." The man's words held weight to them. "Which is why we're going to have to do this in secret. Only the four of us will know the exact details of what transpired here, at least for now. I trust Miss Yaoyorozu and Mister Todoroki to keep quiet about this until I say otherwise."

The two students nodded sombrely.

"Good. Now, I will announce the second phase, and as the students head back to the arena, we'll swipe up this doppelgänger amidst the chaos and… take care of things. I'll leave that part to you, Eraserhead. I'll give you the details on our way back."

Aizawa nodded grimly as well.

"Now, you two… there's a shower in the infirmary, wash up and change back into your school uniforms. No matter how important and valuable this information was, the two of you still fail. While the second phase is in action, make sure to come up with matching cover stories, and remember, not a word about this, okay?"

Todoroki gulped and nodded, as did Yaoyorozu.

The two adults disappeared down the hallway and Todoroki let out a long sigh.

When he looked up again, he saw Yaoyorozu extending her hand towards him. Her blood-covered hand.

He took it and let her pull him up.

"Come on, let's go." He said softly, tightening his hold on her hand. She nodded mutely, and the two of them stepped through the door.

* * *

Moura began directing the remaining students from his class to different locations where civilians needed rescuing.

He sighed internally, wondering exactly how Yaoyorozu had managed to fail the first round. This would be much easier with her here, considering the fact that his classmates _actually listened_ to her, and not just half-heartedly did what he told them to.

"Hey where'd Camie disappear off to?" Maya asked.

"Dunno, but wasn't she acting a bit weird?" Kasoku pondered.

"Yeah… Maybe she hit her head or something?"

Moura shook his head as the two girls headed off in different directions.

Did nobody understand the concept of working together? What happened to the hard, grovelling week they spent in summer camp?

* * *

Yaoyorozu smoothed the pleats on her skirt for what seemed like the thousandth time.

After a while, she leaned forward, supporting her forehead on her hands. "They still smell like iron." She remarked with a dry chuckle.

"The doctors said she'll pull through. Though I'm still surprised they believed our story." Todoroki responded, equally void of emotion.

He felt drained.

The story he and Yaoyorozu had come up with wasn't the best either, and neither of them were very good liars.

Additionally, there was a distinct timeline issue where their story didn't match up with what the others saw.

He'd need to talk to Aizawa again before being confronted by his classmates.

"Hey, Todoroki?"

He looked at Yaoyorozu when she spoke up.

Her fist was clenching the fabric over her chest. "Does it get easier?"

"No, it doesn't." He answered bluntly. "It's more like… you grow accustomed to it."

"I… see…" She closed her eyes. "Then I want to do my best. I'll do my best so that nobody else will have to experience anything like this."

Todoroki smiled a little at that. She seemed a bit livelier, that was good.

"One more thing, Todoroki." Her grip on her blazer loosened, her flat palm resting gently against the fabric over her heart. It was a gesture she made whenever she wanted to convey something heartfelt.

"You better listen, because I'll only say this once." The corners of her lips tugged upwards as she quoted him. "The three of us may have failed this exam, but today," her black eyes locked onto his, "you were my and Camie's hero. Thank you."

As much as her words made his heart swell, he shook his head. "Don't undermine yourself, Yaoyorozu. You can be your own hero."

* * *

 **AN: This may alternatively be called "The OOC train wreck", thank you for reading it!**

 **This chapter... kinda exploded length-wise. I'm not sorry.**

 **Also, this gives me the setup for the ultimate character dynamic. May I present to you: BakuTodoMomoCamie in the supplementary lessons? The glam quartet? The fantastic four?**

 **Leave a review!**

 **~Emi**


	11. Gentle Breeze

**AN: Fun fact: In the German translation of BNHA, everyone refers to each other by their first names. It makes me really tempted to buy the German volumes instead… But I can't take All Might seriously in it, so I probably won't…**

* * *

 _ **The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **X. Gentle Breeze**_

"Woah, so sorry you didn't make it, man."

"Todoroki, I'm sorry."

"Todoroki…"

"Ah, this is my fault! If I had watched out for everyone, then surely you would've passed as well, Todoroki! I'm so sorry!"

"Well, at least you're not the only one. Quite a few of us didn't pass either. And some of those old geezers were impossible to deal with… I swear one of them made a grab for my butt!"

"Are you sure that wasn't Mineta?"

"Ack! You might be right!"

Todoroki ignored most of the comments his classmates made and held up a hand to silence them. "It's alright. There's always next time."

"Next time, my ass! Which of those grannies was it that deducted so many points, huh?! Which one?!" Bakugou seethed, looking like he was about to rip the nearest old person into shreds.

Todoroki had only heard vague details about the second phase, but he could imagine why it would stump somebody like Bakugou.

"Maybe you should work on your personality." He suggested offhandedly.

"I don't want to hear that from somebody who failed in the first round!" The blonde roared back.

Todoroki took a step back since Bakugou was a bit too close now. "And this is why your score is so low."

"Shut up!"

"That's enough!" Aizawa's voice boomed. "Get changed and make sure you don't leave anything behind."

Begrudgingly, the others obeyed, trudging towards the changing rooms, until it was only him and Aizawa left.

"Mr. Aizawa…" he glanced towards his teacher.

"Let's hear your cover story."

"We decided not to delve into any details. We just ended up in areas with no other contestants, and as such we didn't make it into the first hundred students. As for what happened to Utsushimi… The story depends on what happened when you went after the fake." Todoroki explained.

Aizawa raised a brow at him. "I told the teacher from Shiketsu that Utsushimi told me she wasn't feeling well and went home."

"I see. Yaoyorozu predicted something like that." Todoroki let out a deep sigh. "In that case, can we say she got injured on her way home? There's no other way we can explain the injuries to her classmates and parents. As long as the doctors here don't say anything, the story should work out."

Aizawa put a finger to his chin and frowned. "She predicted this, you say?"

"If you mean Yaoyorozu, then yes. It was one of the scenarios she came up with while we were waiting. Why do you ask?"

"It doesn't really matter." His teacher brushed it off. "As for the story, it'll do for now. I'll pass it on to Mera to make sure all of our stories align."

* * *

"Hey, Todoroki? Can I ask you something?" Midoriya approached him.

"What is it?"

"What kind of quirk does Utsushimi have? And does she need to do special training in order to utilize it fully? Also, she was acting kind of weird back there…" He began to rattle down, a pencil and his hero notebook already out and ready.

Todoroki stiffened slightly at her name. "Did you encounter her during the exams?"

"Yeah, after we got split up. Her moves were crazy! As if she vanished! But she said it wasn't her quirk's doing…" He went on. "And then she transformed into Uraraka!"

Todoroki resisted to urge to furrow his brows, keeping his expression as neutral possible. It sounded enough like Utsushimi to fool those who didn't know her well, but… he knew better.

"Her quirk allows her to create realistic illusions." He explained, his voice surprisingly even. "Since it doesn't give her any physical advantages, she specializes in agility and evasion training."

Carefully, he observed Midoriya's expression as he gleefully noted some things down in his notebook. Did he notice any disconnects? Todoroki made sure to keep the descriptions vague, hoping Midoriya's mind would adjust the details according to what he had seen.

"Thanks, Todoroki." He grinned. "But is she always that intense? It felt like she was meeting me for the first time…"

Todoroki gulped. "Ah, she wasn't feeling all that well today. Probably the stress." He knew his lying abilities weren't the greatest, and Midoriya was inconveniently good at picking up details.

"Oh, is that so? I hope she'll get better soon then. Tell her we can talk about heroism any time."

Relief washed over him. The first hurdle was overcome.

"Uhm, sure, I will."

Talk about heroism? What was that supposed to mean?

* * *

His father was… not happy.

But his reaction was a lot tamer than he'd expected.

He'd not really said anything, to be honest.

But Todoroki could tell by the curve of his brow that he was not happy.

Fuyumi had patted him on the back reassuringly. "There's always next time, right?"

"Yeah."

* * *

The next day, he was granted special permission to visit Utsushimi in the hospital under Aizawa's watchful eye.

Utsushimi was still asleep, but at least her complexion looked considerably better than the day before.

"Yaoyorozu will be here in a few minutes." Todoroki told his teacher while they sat in the silence of Utsushimi's hospital room.

"Good, then I can tell you what will happen from here on out."

Neither of them said anything for the remainder of the time, a knock at the door breaking the quiet. Yaoyorozu stuck her head through the frame, a hesitant smile on her face.

"Hey." She entered the room and took a seat next to Todoroki, a grim expression making itself onto her face when she looked at Utsushimi. "I ran into her parents on my way up. They'll drop by again in a while, after they eat something."

"I see." Aizawa answered. "It must be hard on them. According to the doctors, they practically camped here the entire night."

"Not just them," Yaoyorozu sighed. "Our class was in quite the disarray when our teacher told us that she had gotten into an accident, and Shiketsu's reputation has taken a hit. Letting a student go home on her own only to have her end up injured, that's what they're saying."

"It's unfortunate, but we made the decision to prioritize the villain. And it was most definitely the right decision." Aizawa elaborated. "I can't let you in on too many details yet, but I will tell you that we've captured her successfully and are currently interrogating her."

Yaoyorozu put a hand over her heart. "That's a relief."

"Midoriya told me he encountered her during the exam." Todoroki added. "He noticed she was acting weirdly, but I think I was able to thwart his suspicions for now."

Aizawa furrowed his brows. "Midoriya, huh?"

"My classmates are unsuspecting as well. They seemed to buy my story without a hitch." Yaoyorozu added, reaching out to hold one of Utsushimi's hands. "But, to be honest… It makes me sad that none of them realized it was an imposter all along."

Todoroki seconded that opinion. If he were ever to be replaced, would those around him realize it…?

"All that aside, let's talk about your licenses."

"Our licenses? But we failed in the first round, so we should be out of the picture already." Yaoyorozu frowned.

"That's how things would be normally." His teacher ran a hand through his hair. "The two of you weren't there to hear it, but Mera held a speech at the end of the exam. Basically, with All Might's retirement, many villains see it as their time to strike. Because of that, we need as many capable heroes on the field as possible, so we're willing to bend a few rules."

Todoroki's eyes widened. "Wait, you don't mean…"

"Those who failed in the second round are allowed to partake in a special training course until the next exam date. Technically speaking, Camie Utsushimi is one of those students. As for you two, you are both outstanding students with a long list of accomplishments to your names. If it weren't for the incident during which you selflessly chose saving your comrade over an exam, there's no doubt you would have passed with flying colours, especially you, Momo Yaoyorozu."

Yaoyorozu looked up in surprise, then slumped her shoulders with a dejected sigh. "I think you're giving me too much credit, Mr. Aizawa. Back there… I felt so useless. I kept wondering why I didn't react sooner. Maybe if… If I had considered all the possibilities…"

"The outcome would probably be the same." Aizawa interrupted her. "We cannot change what is in the past, but we can learn from it."

"Yaoyorozu, this isn't your fault." Todoroki added, putting a hand on her shoulder. "None of us could have expected this."

"But I was their leader, it's my responsibility!" She rose her voice unexpectedly. "I lost sight of the complete picture and only focused on what was in front of me."

"A leader has to be able to trust their subjects to a certain extent. You sent her out there because you had faith in her, didn't you?" Aizawa said evenly. "From what I've heard, your class remained focused and coordinated, even after the student from Ketsubutsu tried to break everyone apart with his attack. That was because of your leadership, wasn't it? Don't sell yourself short."

Todoroki glanced at Aizawa. He hadn't expected his teacher to say all that, and to a student from another school as well…

Yaoyorozu fell silent for a moment. "I see what you mean, but… I still…"

"That's alright. But remember, the two of you made the right decision in that moment. You worked together despite being enemies on the battlefield, even giving up on the exam knowingly. Those are qualities we want in heroes. Those are qualities we need in heroes. That is why…" Aizawa paused, straightening himself a bit.

"… that is why we have decided to grant you two special permission to participate in the supplementary training courses."

"I… beg your pardon?"

"What?"

"I want to clarify that this has nothing to do with your family names, in fact none of your parents have contacted us regarding this. This is solely the result of your own actions."

Yaoyorozu blinked in confusion. "While I know to appreciate this immensely, I have one question: How are we going to justify this to the others? We'd stick out as the only participants from the first round."

"You'll definitely be called out for favouritism." Todoroki added with a frown.

"Mera and I have decided to contact your school, Miss Yaoyorozu. Once we're done with the interrogation, there is a chance we'll tell the people involved about what really happened. And once that is done, the two of you will have a valid reason to join the supplementary lessons. They don't begin until this weekend, so we still have some time to see how things play out." Aizawa elaborated.

He sighed. "If you feel guilty towards those who didn't make it, remember that most of them were eliminated because of their lack of abilities or sheer bad luck. I can vouch for Todoroki's skills, and you have quite the reputation yourself, Miss Yaoyorozu."

Yaoyorozu looked down and knotted her fingers together. "I… I'll have to think about it."

Todoroki watched her silently. He was ready to jump at the opportunity to take the supplementary lessons, but he could also understand why she was hesitating. Her set of morals were quite different from his own, after all. He turned back to Aizawa.

"Utsushimi will be taking part in the supplementary lessons once she recovers, right?"

His teacher nodded. "If she chooses to. Like I said, officially she made it to the second round."

"In that case, I think I'll participate." Much to his surprise, Yaoyorozu spoke up. "It may be unfair, but in the end this is still beneficial to us, and it would be unwise to turn down an offer like that. If it starts bad rumours about us… we'll just have to deal with them. It's not really going to get any better regarding those from here on, anyways."

"I see. What about you, Todoroki?"

"I'll participate, too."

"Then that's taken care of. I'll let you know when I have more information." Aizawa rounded the topic off.

"Thank you." Yaoyorozu said.

"Todoroki, I'll be outside if you need anything." His teacher announced, leaving the room to the three of them.

Yaoyorozu smiled bitterly as she looked back at Utsushimi, placing a hand over the other girl's unmoving one. "It feels so surreal. She's a chatterbox, she shouldn't be so quiet…."

Todoroki looked down. He could imagine the guilt and helplessness she was feeling right now, he was all too familiar with the feeling himself.

The last time… the last time had been with what happened to Bakugou, when she had wordlessly comforted him.

He clenched his fist. It was his turn to help her now. "I'll get us some coffee. Stay here with her."

* * *

Todoroki watched in awe as the third-year student, Togata, wiped the floor with all of his classmates. It was… impressive to say the least.

Aizawa glanced at him. "Are you not going to join them?"

He shook his head. "I don't have my license."

 _Not yet, at least._

* * *

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] She's still asleep, but she looks quite a bit healthier now._

 _[Shouto Todoroki] That's good to hear._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] My school has been informed as well. I received a very long apology from my teacher and my principal._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] It still feels a bit weird, though. I can't help but blame myself. I know I shouldn't, but I can't help it._

 _[Momo Yaoyorozu] Sorry._

 _[Shouto Todoroki] Don't apologise._

* * *

"Man, this hospital food _sucks_." Camie stuck out her tongue in disgust. "It's… it's so powdery!"

"Officially, you need to take in enough protein to make up for what you missed out on." Momo sighed and pushed over the cup of instant ramen she had snuck in. "Don't tell anyone, okay?"

The blonde's eyes lit up. "My parents mentioned there's a kettle here somewhere. Do you mind?"

Momo laughed a bit at that, already on her way to rummage through the tall cabinet at the other side of the room. It took her a few moments, but eventually she found the apparatus in question.

"Aside from your distaste for the food, how are you feeling?" Momo smiled warmly.

"Could be better." Camie shrugged. "But I think I'll be back on my feet in no time." She grinned and held up two fingers, forming a peace sign.

"I'm glad."

A few minutes later, Camie was happily slurping away her (admittedly unhealthy) cup noodles, a thoughtful frown on her face.

"Hey, Yaomomo. Don't blame yourself." She mumbled while chewing.

Momo resisted the urge to remind her about table manners, gnawing on her bottom lip instead. "That's what everybody's been telling me."

"It was my fault. That guy totally blindsided me." She slumped against her bedrest. "I thought I had it in the bag, but then whoosh, he suddenly disappeared and before I knew it, I was out. Well, I should be saying 'her' since it was a chick, but still."

Momo averted her gaze.

Camie went on. "Besides, if I hadn't been a complete ditz and stuck with my team, this probably wouldn't have happened. So in the end, it's my responsibility."

"It's… good you see your own faults, but I'm not completely without blame either." Momo muttered.

"You were awesome! You were our super-awesome vice-prez!"

Momo couldn't muster an answer.

* * *

"You've been spending an awful lot of time outside lately." Her mother remarked nonchalantly, but Momo could feel her imploring gaze on her.

"I've had a lot of things to do for school. With the new team system and our injured classmate, Mr. Tanaka has been relying on me a lot." She explained firmly.

Her mother's brow quirked ever so slightly, but didn't say anything further.

* * *

"Hey."

Utsushimi grinned at him when he entered the hospital room. "Yes! Finally! The squad is complete again!"

"Sorry, getting permission to go out is a bit difficult nowadays. My teacher is going to come in later to discuss some things." He sat down next to her bed and rummaged through his bag, took something out and passed it to her.

She took the item in question and laughed. "Does Yaomomo know?" She shook the cup of instant soba with a smirk on her face.

Todoroki allowed himself a small smile and put a finger to his lips.

This made Utsushimi laugh again. "There's no need to keep it a secret, though. She brings me some stuff, too." She added a wink at the end.

"Oh, so you complained about the hospital food to her, too?"

"Yeah." Utsushimi pointed towards a cabinet. "There's a kettle in there. Can you throw on some water for me?"

"I'm feeling generous today." He shrugged, standing up again.

Utsushimi stuck out her tongue. "That tone doesn't suit you, brosef."

"Both of you are so immature."

Todoroki glanced towards the door, where Yaoyorozu had just come through. She had a small smile on her face, but it seemed off.

"Yaomomo! Look what Todoroki brought me!" She held up the noodles with a grin.

Yaoyorozu sighed. "This would be the part where I reprimand you, but unfortunately I'm just as guilty." Her hand reached into her bag and pulled out a styrofoam cup.

"Yay! We can share!" Utsushimi exclaimed.

"I would have brought a third one if I knew this was going to happen…" Yaoyorozu shook her head and sat down in the chair adjacent to his. "However, I can do this." She pulled a pair of chopsticks out of her arm and placed it on the table.

Utsushimi laughed, and for a short moment, everything was okay. It was him, Yaoyorozu and Utsushimi, just the three of them. He filled the kettle with a small smile on his face.

This was a much needed moment of peace in their hectic lives.

* * *

Momo watched the U.A. teacher as he leaned against the wall next to the window, his brows furrowed pensively.

She went over the words he had just told them multiple times, wondering whether this was really the best option.

"Is something wrong?" Mr. Aizawa asked her.

"It's just that… after trying to keep things under wraps for so long, this seems a bit redundant." She admitted. "I know it was an option, but it still feels… odd."

"That's alright. We've gone over all the possibilities, and we've concluded this to be the best for everyone involved. Your classmates will understand your reasons for participating in the supplementary course, and at the same time they will pay more attention to their environment."

"I understand that much, I just…" She ran a hand through her hair. "I'm sorry, I'm probably just overthinking this."

Her own thoughts suddenly felt so foreign to herself as she fiddled with her fingers. Could she trust her own judgement?

* * *

Mr. Tanaka stood in front of the class, a nervous grimace on his face. Momo was standing next to him, not feeling much better.

She cleared her throat. "I have a few things to tell you guys. First of all, Camie will be released from the hospital tomorrow morning and will be joining us for our usual curriculum."

A wave of relieved whispers crossed the room.

"Secondly, I'm afraid I have a confession to make. I know many of you have a substantial amount of trust in me, and because of certain circumstances I have been forced to betray that trust." The whispers died down, curious eyes meeting her in silence.

"The truth regarding Camie's injuries is…"

* * *

"…that she was attacked by a villain during the exams." Aizawa explained, his tone serious. Todoroki was standing to his left, eyes trained on the wall in the back, avoiding his classmates' gazes.

"Todoroki and a student from Shiketsu discovered the injured person and decided to prioritize her over the exam, which is something I hope any of you would have done if you were in his shoes. However, this lead to the two of them failing in the first round. Because of their quick thinking and appropriate reactions, we were able to detain villain and interrogate her, concluding that she is in fact a member of the League Of Villains." Aizawa paused momentarily.

"You faced them during the training camp, and this situation has alerted us that they are not above targeting other schools. Naturally, as some of you might be able to assume already, this information could cause a media uproar, so we're telling you this in confidentiality. This is also the reason why Todoroki was not allowed to tell anybody about this so far and the injured student's circumstances were covered up. Security is tightening for all schools in the area, not only U.A. and Shiketsu."

* * *

Momo looked at the floor, clasping her hands nervously. "I'm sorry."

Mr. Tanaka cleared his throat. "Due the circumstances, Yaoyorozu and the U.A. student have been giving special permission to participate in the supplementary courses along with Utsushimi. We wanted to bring this subject to your attention as this ties in with the increased crime rate and more bold villains attacks. You may have obtained your provisional licenses, but please pay attention out there."

Momo dared looking up into the class. She was met with many sympathetic and surprised looks. Moura stood up, a serious expression on his face.

"Yaoyorozu, trust me when I say this, and I believe I speak for the whole class when I say this. You didn't betray our trust. You did what needed to be done, no matter the circumstances. You did the right thing. And we can only aspire to follow in your footsteps."

She inhaled sharply, meeting his eyes. Her other classmates broke out into broken sentences of agreement, allowing her to relax a little.

* * *

"Woah, Todoroki, how manly!"

"The fuck?! I have to attend that goddamn course with him?!"

Todoroki slumped into his own chair, unsure of how to respond to the commotion in his class.

"Hey," Yoarashi said.

Todoroki glanced over to see the taller student giving him a thumbs up. "That sounded pretty hot-blooded."

An odd sensation came over him. He never thought the day would came that Yoarashi of all people would try to cheer him up.

* * *

Todoroki was an early riser, so he was already standing at the kitchen counter when Midoriya stormed into the kitchen.

"Breakfast!" He exclaimed. "I have to make sure to eat a good breakfast!"

Todoroki mere raised a brow and stepped aside, allowing the green-haired boy to rummage through the drawer behind him.

"You're up earlier than usual." He remarked.

"Yeah, my internship starts today." Midoriya explained excitedly, for the third time in the span of the last 24 hours. "Gotta eat a proper meal and get there on time."

Todoroki glanced at the clock. "I don't think you need three hours for that."

"I'll be there half an hour early!" Midoriya announced loudly, fumbling through the fridge for something. "And what if I miss the bus? I'll be at the bus stop ten minutes earlier, just to be on the safe side!"

"Okay, okay, I get it." Todoroki waved it off.

Twenty minutes later, Asui and Uraraka ripped the door to the kitchen open. "We must eat a good breakfast!" Uraraka exclaimed.

The kitchen was getting crowded.

"I'm in the common room if you need me." He muttered, leaving the kitchen just in time to bump into Kirishima when he exited.

"Good morning!" The bubbly redhead greeted him and the other three.

He simply nodded in acknowledgement, leaving the four of them to prepare for their internships.

* * *

Seeing the news was one thing, but having Midoriya, Uraraka, Asui and Kirishima return to the dorms in one piece was another.

The others greeted them jovially and full of tears, and while he also felt relief that they were okay, he was troubled by something else.

His phone stared back at him innocently, displaying a message that had instantly managed to upset his mood.

 _[_ _Enji Todoroki_ _]_ _Shouto! Good news. I was able to find some time off. I'll be at your training tomorrow, watching._

His father had been one of the few other people who heard the entire story, given that he was one of the heroes involved in the Camino incident. What it ultimately lead to was a short moment of… something. His father had looked at him with an indiscernible expression, then grumbled something and left.

Todoroki closed the app and excused himself. Maybe things would be better if he slept on it for a night.

* * *

"So, we've been doing this course with the eight of you over the past few days, but from today on we have three additions." Mera announced lazily, barely lifting his hand to gesture towards them. "Please introduce yourselves."

The three of them came forward, Todoroki grimacing slightly as all the attention shifted to them.

"I'm a first-year at Shiketsu. You can call Camie!"

"I'm also a first-year at Shiketsu High. My name is Momo Yaoyorozu, it's a pleasure to meet all of you."

"First-year at U.A., Shouto Todoroki."

"I know this seems out-of-nowhere, but the three of them were involved in an incident during the exam, so we're allowing them to participate to help with our investigation…" Mera went on, leaning his head into his palm, drooping closer to the surface with each word.

Utsushimi waved at the other students cheerfully. "We're all super-grateful we got special permish'!"

"Permission." Yaoyorozu corrected subconsciously.

"Oh right, special permission." The blonde girl laughed.

"With that," Mera continued, "I leave the stage to you, Gang Orca."

Gang Orca stepped up, immediately swaying the atmosphere. "All of you want to be heroes?! Don't make me laugh, all I see are worthless drop-outs!"

"Yikes." Yaoyorozu muttered under her breath.

"There's a special exercise for… _certain_ candidates today." Gang Orca swept his gaze over the group of students, before extending a hand and pointing a finger at Utsushimi. "You, I don't care about your special circumstances." His finger shot towards himself and Yaoyorozu. "Same goes for you two. I ain't acknowledging anything your teachers say about you until I see it with my own two eyes."

Gang Orca squinted his eyes, his finger moving towards the last candidate. Bakugou. "You. No explanation needed."

"Huh?! What's that supposed to mean?!" The blonde exploded. "Why do I have to get stuck with this fucking bastard?"

"Being disrespectful to rescuees and other heroes-in-training alike already tells me you are severely lacking something." Gang Orca's finger was kept aimed at Bakugou.

"And you three, unless I see that you have that certain something I will not hesitate to throw you out." His hand swept toward them again.

"Prove to me that you have it! Prove to me that you have "heart"!"

"…Heart?" Yaoyorozu wrinkled her brows.

"Not everyone will accept the hand you hold out to them! But you must still save them!" Gang Orca's gaze lifted, directing itself to the large doors at the other end of the gymnasium. "Conquer this battle of life and death!"

The doors opened, capturing everyone's attention, and in stormed a crowd of… children?

* * *

Momo blinked in surprise as a small boy began tugging at Bakugou's gauntlets. Todoroki wasn't spared either, swarmed by children who were incessantly asking him questions and pulling at his gear.

"Children?!" Camie clasped her hands. "I love children!" She grabbed the nearest one, hugging it tightly.

Momo decided to follow her example, crouching down to talk to one of the girls. "Hello there, what's your na-"

"Hussy."

Momo's smile tightened. "Now, now, a young lady shouldn't be using words like th-"

"You're just another hussy, like that witch over there. You're just trying to seduce Sho!"

"Eh?"

The girl, along with the other two girls by her side, pulled a menacing grimace while backing away. "Ignore them. Ignore them. Ignore them."

"One of them pinched my butt! Can you believe that, Yaomomo?" Camie whined, rubbing her rear. "And then she called me hussy! Just because I gave somebody a hug… I can't believe they're at that age already…"

Momo still felt confused, but it seemed that Camie had a better grasp on the situation. Todoroki was currently buried under a mountain of children, and Bakugou was scowling and shouting at the ones surrounding him.

"Excuse me…" She turned to Gang Orca and what she assumed to be the children's teacher. "What's going on here?"

"I'm sorry!" The woman apologised pressing her hands together and bowing. "My class is full of problem children, and I know they're a handful, and that they've already caused you so much trouble…" She looked up again, tears peaking from the corners of her eyes. "B-but…"

"Don't worry, Miss." Gang Orca replied, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. He turned back to Momo, who still hadn't received a response.

"Listen up!" He shouted into the crowd, catching Momo by surprise. "The four of you are to cooperate and move the hearts of these children!" He turned back to face the other students. "The rest of you will have normal lessons and seminars."

"What?!" Bakugou managed to free himself from the kids. "You want us to be nannies for these brats?!"

* * *

It only took a few moments for Present Mic to hijack the microphone, spreading his commentary through the gymnasium.

* * *

"You heard that teacher. This is an important part of their lives and will mould them for the rest of their lives. We cannot afford to screw up." Yaoyorozu took the initiative.

The children were currently occupied, having secured Bakugou's gauntlets and raided the gym store rooms.

"I don't get why I have to work with these losers."

Todoroki could feel Yaoyorozu's patience wearing thin as she turned towards Bakugou, who was muttering to himself. "If you are so against working with others, then maybe you aren't suited for this profession." Her matter-of-factly tone was still on the kind side, the trying-to-be-helpful-but-also-polite end of the spectrum, but his temperamental classmate froze up and regarded her suspiciously.

"I wasn't talking to you." He growled in response.

"I know, but your unnecessary remarks are not contributing to anything." Yaoyorozu's tone slid further down into the annoyed area. "You seem like the person who would accept challenges, so why not accept this one as well?"

"Huh?! I never said I wasn't accepting it! Bring it on, you got nothing on me!" Bakugou pulled a grimace, baring his teeth at the black-haired girl.

"Wow, he changes his mind faster than a woman." Utsushimi remarked, sounding genuinely surprised.

"Did you say something, blondie?!" Bakugou redirected his glare towards her.

"Taking out your anger on others will get you nowhere." Yaoyorozu cut back in. "We're supposed to be role models, and yet you're acting on your emotions without a second thought. If you aren't careful, that might lead you to make some unwise decisions. Do you really think the public will look up to somebody like that? Is that really the kind of person you want to become? Do you want these children here to start imitating you?"

"Listen up, bitch, I'm going to be the number one hero, and I'm not letting some chick who doesn't even know me tell me what to fucking do!" The explosion user retorted loudly.

"There's something I often tell my classmates when they get out of hand." Yaoyorozu said calmly, a serious glint in her eyes. "It doesn't matter if you can beat up ten villains, or a hundred, if you can't save a single life."

Ouch. Yaoyorozu just unintentionally hit a sore spot.

Contrary to his expectations, Bakugou didn't leap at her and try blowing her face up, instead he just remained still, unrelenting gaze locked with her determined eyes, intensified by the fact that Yaoyorozu was towering slightly over him.

"Whatever." Bakugou huffed after a seemingly endless silence. "Let's just get this goddamn exercise over and done with."

He turned on his heel and walked away, simmering in silent anger.

Yaoyorozu was still watching him, an unreadable expression on her face. "Honestly…" She sighed.

"Maybe I should make a sign, you know, like those ones they use for TV?" Utsushimi made a few rectangular gestures. "I'll hold it up whenever you start hurting people's feelings."

Yaoyorozu turned to face her, her eyebrows still set in a frown. "Maybe I went a bit overboard. He's the one who got kidnapped, after all. I'm sure he's been through a lot." Her eyes trailed towards the ground. "However, that's still no excuse for his behaviour."

Todoroki saw her fist clench and decided to speak up as well. "I know the way he expresses himself is… excessive, but his intentions are in the right place… I think."

Yaoyorozu chuckled softly but it still sounded strained. "You're not making a very convincing argument, Todoroki."

"I doubt I'll ever be able to make a convincing argument in his favour, and I'm not trying to." He took a deep breath. "But that's not the point here. You're very tense, and it's noticeable."

Yaoyorozu grimaced at those words, just as Utsushimi reached up to knead her shoulders. "Woah, it's like I'm trying to crush rocks. Yaomomo, what gives?"

"I think you're stressing yourself out over this too much." Todoroki went on.

Yaoyorozu pulled her lips into a thin line. "I know, but I just can't seem to relax. After what happened in the exam… I…"

Utsushimi suddenly wrapped her arms around her abdomen from behind, making the taller girl pause. "It's not your fault, I was careless. You were awesome out there, Yaomomo."

"Don't think about the past too much. You've learned from the experience and now it's time to take a step forward." He held out his hand for her. "You've got this, we believe in you. You should believe in yourself as well."

Yaoyorozu stared at his hand, then let out a long sigh. "You're right. We need to work together to figure this out. Instead of reprimanding him, I should be showing him the right way to do things."

While not entirely as he intended, Yaoyorozu seemed to calm down considerably. He watched as she approached Bakugou again, forcefully pulling him back into their makeshift conference circle while he protested.

"I said, let go of me you fucking bi-"

Yaoyorozu cleared her throat. "Gang Orca told us to cooperate. So, cooperate we shall. What are your suggestions?"

"We beat the shit out of them and show them how diminutive their puny little existences are."

"Rejected."

"That was too fast! You didn't even consider it!"

"That's just bad upbringing, so no, it's rejected."

"How about Yaomomo doesn't go all mom on them? They want to have fun, not get reprimanded."

"Ack-pt-fd-excuse me?!" Yaoyorozu spluttered. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

"You were totally scolding that girl just now." Utsushimi wagged a finger at her. "They're at an age where parents and responsible adults are uncool."

Yaoyorozu made an incomprehensive face. "What?"

"Also, they're totally jelly of our boobs."

Yaoyorozu's mouth fell open, rendered speechless. It took her a few seconds to recover, awkwardly couching into her hand. "Uh, that aside, we need to connect to them somehow."

Todoroki saw this as his queue to step in, steering away from the previous subject. "Why don't we tell them about ourselves? They might relate to something… Our dreams, aspirations, goals in life…?"

"That's just boring." Utsushimi disapproved. "Next."

"Wait." Yaoyorozu halted her. "Actually, talking about aspirations might be a good idea. They probably want to be heroes too, right? We might be able to connect to them that way."

* * *

Momo returned to the group three minutes later, utterly defeated. "They got me…" She grimaced. "They totally got me…"

"Yaomomo, you're just too honest." Camie remarked dryly. "You aren't even here because you caused trouble for teachers, so why did it get to you?"

"Because we're taking up their time by being here." She explained. "And it'd be hypocritical of me to call them out for it when we're doing it ourselves."

"Tch, I still think my idea is the best." Bakugou mumbled. "A man communicates with his fists and actions. I'm telling you, words won't get through to them. At least not the way you're delivering them."

"Basically, we need to make them think we're cool and awesome. And more than just our boobs."

"Camie, please drop that topic." Momo groaned. "Besides, that's not something grade schoolers should be thinking about. But back on track, Bakugou's suggestion won't work because we would be looking down on them."

The blonde looked away. "Okay, so maybe losing to an opponent who looks down on you leaves you feeling shitty." He grumbled. "But do you have any better suggestions?"

"What if we broaden their outlooks a bit?" Todoroki spoke up. "Just a bit… show them that they shouldn't be looking down on us either."

Momo processed his words. "Well, yes, but the question is still how we plan to accomplish that… We need to do something that shows them we accept them as equals, but also provides entertainment for them…

"Entertainment, huh…" Camie's eyes suddenly lit up. "Wait, guys, think about it! What do all little girls want?"

"How the fuck am I supposed to know?!"

"A promising future?" Todoroki suggested.

"You two are hopeless." Camie sighed, shook her head and turned towards Momo. "Okay, think, what did you want when you were a little girl?"

Momo pondered for a few seconds, then clapped her hands in realization. "Encyclopaedias."

"NO! A handsome prince! You've wanted a handsome prince before, right?!"

"Not really. I mean, what would I use one for?"

"Yaomomo! You don't use your handsome prince for things! He just stands there looking handsome! Eye candy! He gives you compliments and sweeps you off your feet."

"He sounds pretty useless if you ask me." Momo replied with a frown. "Why would anybody want one?"

"Did you never read fairy tales when you were younger?"

"I did, but the princes in those stories…" She paused. "I know it's considered classical literature, but I still disapprove of their vulgar actions."

Camie facepalmed. "Why do I have the feeling we're talking about two completely different things?"

"That doesn't fucking matter!" Bakugou cut in, patience thin. "I don't care whatever you're planning, blondie, just do it and we'll see how effective it is."

"The Pomeranian has spoken!" Camie grinned and gestured them to follow her. "The main idea here is to show them who we are by using our quirks." She explained. "Now watch."

* * *

"I've been enthralled by your cute face!"

Momo immediately tried to get herself under control, clamming a hand over her mouth and suppressing the laughter rising up her throat.

Much to her surprise, Bakugou mirrored her actions, actively averting his gaze.

Todoroki was standing amidst everything, a clueless expression on his face. "Was what she did really did that funny?" He pondered, putting a hand to his chin.

Momo could only nod, a soft wheeze escaping her lips, evolving into a cough after she held her laughter in too long.

Bakugou also broke out into roaring laughter, almost tearing up from it. "Oh my god. Oh my fucking god. That was priceless!"

Camie smirked confidently.

"Man down!" One of the kids shouted. "I repeat, man down! We must avenge her!" All their attention shifted to the quartet, making Bakugou grin and flex his wrists. "Oh yeah, _now_ we're talking."

Momo sighed in exasperation. He truly was hopeless. But in the face of the current situation, she guessed she could let it slide.

Their opponents had unknown quirks, after all. Chaos broke out, a myriad of objects stemming from a wide variety of quirks suddenly coming at them from all directions.

Bakugou didn't hesitate taking them on, sparks emitting from his palms.

With Todoroki and him building a defensive wall, she felt that she and Camie didn't really have to do anything but dodge the occasional projectile flung their way.

Once the children realized that they couldn't break through their defences, they hesitated for a miniscule moment, giving them the opportunity to counterstrike.

"Hey, Todoroki." Camie poked the boy's side. "Do that thing."

He seemed to catch on to what she was implying, nodding. "Here I go."

Camie flipped her hair. "Alright, it's time for yours truly to spice this old gym up."

Momo watched as a huge ice structure took over the gymnasium, and after a few seconds she realized it formed a giant slide. She blanched, remembering that time Camie said something about Todoroki's quirk and a swimming pool.

Camie's illusion covered the gym, giving the environment a magical touch. The children stopped their attacks, caught up in awe by the circumstances.

"Yaoyorozu, can you make something that I can use to make a staircase or something?" Todoroki asked her, surrounded by children who were tugging at his outfit, begging to go up on the slide.

The sight made her giggle. "Sure, I'll be there in a moment."

* * *

Laughter filled the room and Camie let a self-satisfied smirk slip onto her lips. "Alright, next project! A super rad rollercoaster!" She declared, holding a hand up to the ceiling.

"Yeah!" The children cheered.

"I don't think that's possible." Yaomomo remarked warily. "A slide is one thing, a rollercoaster another."

"Reach for the horizon, Yaomomo, reach for the horizon."

* * *

 **AN: We're one chapter away from catching up with the manga! Yay!**

 **As always, reviews make my day, so please leave one!**

 **~Emi**


	12. Interlude: Rayleigh

**AN: It's another interlude chapter! I thought I'd put this one out before CH 11 since that one covers the rest of September and November and this takes place in early summer. I've done my calculations and this prob doesn't work out timeline-wise if you examine it too closely, but suspense of belief exists for a reason :^)**

 **Takes place before the training camp btw**

* * *

 _ **Interlude: Natsuo Todoroki – "Rayleigh"**_

It was summer break, but it didn't feel like a real break to Natsuo. He sighed as he readjusted the books clutched under his arm, using his other hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead. He'd put them in is bag if it weren't full already, but reality had other plans for him.

The only relief this day had to offer was that he'd been able to make some time to drop by the hospital before visiting hours came to a close, meaning he could finally pay his mother a visit.

Summer in Musutafu was tough, especially with his natural sensitivity towards the heat. He grimaced at the sun, proudly standing high despite it already being quite late in the afternoon. Honestly, the people who thought that this was the best time of the year had to be crazy. Sweating without even doing anything was just uncomfortable and made everything sticky and icky.

The blue, clear sky was almost mocking him in a way, giving off vibes of carefree summer days and relaxation at long, white beaches. He shook his head, he just had to reach the air-conditioned hospital, and hopefully the heat would have died down by the time he was kicked out.

He hadn't been back in Musutafu for a while, so seeing how much the city changed while he was gone was quite interesting. Even now, he was crossing a small bridge that they had decked out with a few benches for people to sit on. It was actually pretty neat.

Well, the bridge was empty for the most part, save for a lone girl who was leaning against the ledge, looking into the water. Just as he looked at her, her head snapped towards him, honey blonde hair whipping around her face as their eyes met.

She began waving frantically and ran towards him, much to his confusion. He quickly glanced over his shoulder, wondering whether she was approaching somebody behind him, but there was no one there.

"Hey there!" She shouted, coming to a stop in front of him. "Do you have a moment?"

He blinked a few times, meeting her gaze warily. Well, uh, he was used to girls approaching him, but wasn't she a bit… young? Sure, she was pretty, but she looked like she was around Shouto's age…

"My friends kinda fell into the river and I need help." She rambled on, gesturing wildly.

Natsuo breathed in relief. So, she didn't approach him because of, uh, that, …

"Camie!" Came a distant, echo-y voice. The blonde girl reacted immediately, running back to the ledge and leaning over it.

"Just wait a sec! I'll get help!"

"No, just watch out!" The voice responded, followed by a grappling hook a few seconds later. It shot up and sank into the ledge, securing itself. The girl screeched and pulled at her hair, looking around in panic.

Natsuo looked away immediately, pretending to not have seen anything. The whole 'don't use your quirk in public' thing was only kept loosely, but if high school students were caught doing it without permission, it might cause some ugly trouble.

"Todoroki!" The girl shouted down, scolding, but also catching Natsuo's attention in the process. "Why did you let her use her quirk?!"

Now, Todoroki was a common surname, it could be anyone, right? What were the odds that it was somebody from his fami-

"She had better arguments than me!"

Natsuo rushed to the ledge, peering over. That voice sounded too much like Shouto's.

Sure enough, that tell-tale hair could only belong to his younger brother. Next to him in the water, there was a girl with long black hair, but he couldn't discern anything else about her from this height.

The blonde girl looked at him the side, an uncertain expression on her face. "So, uh, you're not gonna tell anybody, rightsies?"

The grappling hook scratched against the stone wall, garnering their attention. "Utsushimi, I'm coming up!" His brother announced, followed by him pulling himself up the rope.

Natsuo hesitantly looked to the left and the right, wondering whether he should disappear or greet Shouto. If he started running now, he could still make it…

He didn't realize he had spent so much time overthinking the situation that Shouto had already reached the top, water dripping onto the ledge as he pulled himself over it.

His brother stopped halfway through, and the two of them looked at each other awkwardly.

"…Hi." Natsuo lifted a hand and waved meekly.

"Natsuo." Came Shouto's monotone reply. "What are you doing here?"

"I got him to help you two, but Yaomomo was too fast." The blonde girl pouted.

"Todoroki, what's holding you up?" The other girl asked, just a few metres below Shouto.

"Right, sorry." His younger brother apologized hastily, moving over the wall effortlessly, extending a hand to the girl who followed mere seconds later. She accepted it, swinging her feet over the ledge with more grace than should be humanly possible.

Shouto turned back to face him. "I thought you have exams coming up."

Natsuo smiled shakily. "More importantly, Shouto, why were you in the river to begin with?"

"Not to interrupt you, but that was partially my fault." The other girl spoke up, squeezing the water out of her long black tresses. "I was trying to explain Rayleigh scattering to him, but then Camie surprised us from behind, and, uhm," A small blush made its way to her cheeks as she averted her gaze. "I accidently pulled him along with me."

"Ehehe… oopsie." The blonde stuck out her tongue innocently.

Natsuo blinked a few times. "Rayleigh… scattering?"

"Yes, you know, the reason why the sky is blue?" She pointed upwards, supporting her statement. The girl furrowed her brows. "I'm sorry, but, well, you're not going to tell anybody I used my quirk, are you?"

"Yaoyorozu, this is my older brother, Natsuo." Shouto stated as if that explained everything.

Yaoyorozu? Yaoyorozu?! As in _the_ Yaoyorozu family?!

The girl in question tilted her head slightly, then put a hand to her chin. "Is that good or bad? I can't really tell with your family."

"He won't tell anybody. If he does, I will simply have to tell Mom about the time he used his quirk to d-"

"WaaAahhh Shouto, don't tell anybody about that!" Natsuo leapt forward, clamming a hand over his brother's mouth. "I won't tell anybody, I won't tell anybody! I didn't see anything to begin with!"

The Yaoyorozu girl bowed slightly, not missing a beat. "Thank you for cooperating with us."

"Ehehe, sure." This girl was scary, why was she hanging out with Shouto to begin with? Well, they were talking about physics, so maybe a tutor?

"Yay, now, let's go eat that ice cream!" The blonde girl exclaimed, linking her arms with Yaoyorozu's. "Todoroki's buying because he lost at shiritori!"

Shouto pulled Natsuo's hand away from his face. "That's only because you tricked me into answering with something that ended with 'n'."

"You still fell for it, so it's ice cream for us."

"I caused trouble for us, so maybe I should cover part of it as well?"

"Nuh-uh, you beat both of us at shiritori, so he's paying."

"W-well, my offer stands. I feel bad not paying."

"It's okay, Utsushimi's right. We agreed that the loser would pay, which is why I suggest that both she and I cover the bill."

"Uh, _excuse me_? What was that?"

"We never specified how many losers would pay."

"You… you… "

Natsuo watched the back and forth, scratching tutoring from his list of possibilities. It was almost as if… as if… as if Shouto was hanging out with friends.

"Okay, stop! We'll get a jumbo cup and share it, okay?" The Yaoyorozu girl cut in. "Everybody pays an equal part."

"No, Yaomomo! You don't have to pay! Todoroki and I will take care of that!"

The Utsushimi girl paused after those words left her mouth. "W-wait, that's not what I meant to say! Todoroki's buying us the jumbo cup!"

Shouto cleared his throat. "Ah, but you said you'd do it."

"Let's settle this! Rock, Paper, SCISSORS!"

The blonde girl grumbled when her scissors lost against Shouto's rock and slumped her shoulders. "Fine, you win."

"Well, since that's settled," Yaoyorozu spoke up again, having procured two towels out of nowhere (was it her quirk?) and draping one over Shouto's shoulders, "I think we've wasted enough of Todoroki's brother's time. Let's get going, shall we?"

It was an odd trio, the polite Yaoyorozu girl, his monotonous brother and the peppy blonde girl. And yet somehow… it worked out.

"Natsuo, are you visiting Mom now? It's the only reason you'd be here at this hour."

"Oh? Uh, yeah. I finally managed to free my schedule up a bit." Natsuo smiled.

Shouto glanced at the two girls. "Do you want me to come with you? They'll understand."

Natsuo laughed and patted his brother on the back. "No, no, you go eat ice cream with your friends, okay? Your big bro's got this."

* * *

Natsuo looked over his shoulder at the group of three going in the opposite direction, then directed his gaze towards the blue sky overhead. Rayleigh scattering, huh?

* * *

 **AN: I took a break from studying to write this, which is also why it's so short. I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless :)**

 **Reviews, pretty pls?**

 **~Emi**


	13. Autumn Afternoons

_**The Girl From Shiketsu**_

 _ **XI. Autumn Afternoons**_

 _"Hey, so, uh..." Camie twirled a strand of hair around her finger. "How did your dad deal with the news?"_

 _Todoroki wrinkled his brow. "What news?"_

 _"Y'know, All Might's retirement."_ _S_ _he gestured at the air vaguely._

 _Momo watched as Todoroki furrowed his brow even further. Just as she was about to tell Camie to drop the topic, he answered._

 _"Not... that well."_

 _"I figured as much." Momo sighed. "I know it might seem weird for me to say this, but... I'm sure this isn't what he wanted."_

 _"None of us wanted this." Todoroki_ _scoffed_ _._

 _"That's true. It's super crazy, I mean, your dad's the Number One Hero now." Camie said._

 _Momo stared ahead. The Number One Hero, huh? "I wouldn't want a cheap victory like that."_ _She mumbled to herself._

 _"In what sense?"_ _Todoroki glanced at her curiously._

 _"To win because of circumstances, and not your own abilities. It feels... Like you've been cheated out of the chance to prove yourself. I know you don't get along with your father for valid reasons, but... The Hero Endeavour deserved better, don't you think?"_

 _Todoroki remained silent. Had she said too much? Should she expand on her thoughts further?_

 _"Well, he's still human at the end of the day, you know? I know I'd be pooped if something like that happened to me." Camie_ _added_ _thoughtlessly._

 _Momo gnawed on her lower lip. Todoroki didn't seem to be responding to anything._ _Should she change the subject?_

 _Then_ _he finally let out a_ _long_ _breath._ _"Sometimes, I forget to think about him that way." He admitted. "I guess... I guess you have a point, Yaoyorozu."_

 _Momo felt relief wash over herself. For a moment there, she feared she had gone too far._

 _"The Number One Hero..." Todoroki murmured. "I can't explain it, but... Is my father really capable of being the next Symbol Of Peace? It just feels wrong."_

 _Momo knitted her fingers together. "Maybe... Maybe_ _h_ _e doesn't have to be a Symbol Of Peace. Maybe he can just stay a bright endeavour, leading towards the future."_

" _She's right. All Might was the Symbol Of Peace, nobody can take over that title just like that." Camie mused. "I guess we'll see where things go soon enough…"_

 _Todoroki leaned his weight into his palm. "The future, huh?_ _I wonder what that holds in store for us…_ _"_

* * *

"Alright, it's time to clean up!" Camie said into a megaphone, waving the children along. "Make sure to take responsibility for the things you created with your quirks! Cool heroes take responsibility for their deeds!"

"You're really good at this, Camie." Momo observed with a smile.

The blonde girl grinned. "Kids are awesome! I love working with them."

She laughed at that and glanced over at Todoroki and Bakugou who were currently trying to figure out the best way to melt the large ice structures occupying the gym.

"Do you need help?" She offered. "Camie has things under control over there."

"No, we don't need your fucking help."

"Yes, we'd appreciate your input."

Bakugou and Todoroki glared at each other.

"As I was saying," Todoroki went on, "we aren't really sure how to do this. If I evaporate all the ice at once the humidity in here in going to sky-rocket, and I'm not sure that's good for the equipment. Bakugou suggested blowing it to chunks and taking them out one at a time, but that seems a bit over-the-top."

Momo out a finger to her chin. Todoroki had a point, and while quirk effects were covered by insurance to an extent, spreading unnecessary amounts of humidity here wouldn't be the most ideal solution.

On the other hand, Bakugou's suggestion would take up a lot of time. Unless they had more people helping out, it'd take forever… Wait, more people? She looked at the children who were still following Camie's orders.

"I have an idea."

* * *

"HAAAAAHAAHAHHAAAAA!"

Todoroki sighed as Bakugou laughed maniacally. Yaoyorozu had decided to go with his classmate's plan, leaving him to make sure the children didn't get caught up in the debris.

"Stay back, it's dangerous." He herded the children aside.

"He's really going all-out, isn't he?" Yaoyorozu asked, a slight undertone of worry in her words.

"Don't mind him, this is what he's always like." He shrugged in response.

"Well, he's almost done, so…" Utsushimi picked up her megaphone again. "The one who cleans up the most shards gets a free cookie! It's on me!"

"YAAY!" The kids children cheered, storming past him.

"Wow, they sure have a lot of energy left." Yaoyorozu chuckled. "We should go and help them."

Todoroki glanced at the bleachers. His father was still there. Tch.

"Mr. Willy! Look!" Somebody tugged at his sleeve, distracting him form that line of thought.

"My name is not Mr. Willy."

"Whatever, check out my quirk! I can make the ice disappear just like that!" The little boy grinned proudly, displaying his abilities.

The next generation, huh? What the future holds in store…

He smiled a bit. "Your quirk will shine in rescue operations, won't it?"

"Y-Yeah! And that cookie will be mine!"

* * *

"Whew, we're finally done. I'm sooo tired." Camie groaned as she slumped onto the bench in the locker room.

"Be glad you just had to clean up stuff." Another girl spoke up. "I know that I'll have an ugly bruise tomorrow."

"Yeah, definitely not looking forward to that." Camie chuckled. "Right, Yaomomo?"

When no response came, she looked over at her friend, who was busy detangling something out of her hair. She scrunched her eyebrows in concentration, trying to comb through the area with her fingers. A small satisfactory smile made its way to her face when she finally managed to do so.

"Yaomomo."

"Ah, yes, sorry, I wasn't listening."

"I know. We were talking about what tortures we will be put through during this course."

"Tortures? Please, you're exaggerating." Yaomomo waved it off.

"I'm not, though." The other girl cut in. "Your muscles will scream and cry for the next few days, trust me."

"We'll see for ourselves, right? We shouldn't make any statements such as that until then."

Camie glowered at her friend, leave it to Yaomomo to disregard something like this. "You only say that because of the torture you put us through during summer camp. I'm never letting you live that one down."

"Can you really complain? You're in much better shape because of that training."

Camie did the only mature thing she could think of, namely sticking out her tongue.

* * *

"Joint exercises? Count me in!" Camie exclaimed happily. "Hey Yaomomo, joint exercises with Todoroki!"

"Don't disregard the rest of U.A. that easily." Yaomomo chided her. "Besides, Mr. Tanaka, I'm not sure our schedule allows excursions such as that."

"I know that, Yaoyorozu, but I'm sure I can talk to the principal." Their teacher tried reassuring them.

Yaomomo didn't seem very convinced by the looks of it.

"Trust me on this one, please." Mr. Tanaka went on.

"Alright… Joint exercises would be beneficial…" Yaomomo pondered. "If we really can get him to agree…"

"Don't worry!" Present Mic cut in. "It will work out, I'm sure!"

* * *

Todoroki grimaced and slapped away his father's hand.

"Shouto. I'm proud of you, son."

Momo felt awkward witnessing this scene, and it was clear that most of the other students shared that sentiment.

"Which is why I'll become a hero you can be proud of."

Todoroki didn't respond, but it stirred something inside herself.

"Your father is the Number One Hero, the greatest man." Endeavour went on.

Todoroki merely rubbed the back of his neck. "Do whatever you want."

Momo steeled her nerves. Todoroki had his own feelings towards this subject, but so did she. Endeavour wasn't All Might, but that was the whole point of it, wasn't it?

"Endeavour!" She called out. "We'll be cheering you on."

* * *

Enji looked at the girl in surprise. What did the Yaoyorozu heir think she was saying? He had seen her speaking to Shouto earlier, so did she know something he didn't?

But at the same time, there was something about the sincerity she spoke those words with. There was only one thing he could do, and that was respond with his own earnest.

"Thank you."

* * *

 **(AN: originally, this is where Momo's *epic* birthday party would've come in, but for reasons I'll disclose at the end of the chapter, this is not the case)**

* * *

"What's all the fuss about?" Todoroki asked.

Half of his class was huddled around a laptop in the common room, shouting at each other, Iida in the middle, trying to get things under control.

He had merely come down to get something from the kitchen but was greeted by this instead.

"We're still trying to figure out what to do for the culture festival." Ashido sighed. "Why can't we just do something where everyone can dance or something?"

The culture festival? Oh right, they hadn't reached a consensus during class and Aizawa had thrown them out in the end.

"Dancing?" He mumbled to himself. "Actually, that's not such a bad idea."

He pushed his way through the crowd to the laptop. Dancing… There was that thing that Utsushimi had mentioned…

"What was it called again?" It was on her endless list of suggestions for Yaoyorozu's birthday, but he had shot it down pretty quickly.

Here, however, it might actually work out.

"You know, that thing were everybody gets rowdy…" He elaborated. Concert! The word was concert!

Mineta stared at him in disbelief. "When did you become a party person…?"

"I'm not." He replied quickly. "I got the idea from a friend."

* * *

 _[_ _Camie Utsushimi_ _]_ _It sucks that we can't come to your culture festival T.T stupid rules ._

 _[_ _Momo Yaoyorozu_ _]_ _It is as it is. Besides, we need to focus on our own festival._

 _[_ _Shouto Todoroki_ _]_ _Things will be busy over here. Iida is very intense when it comes to planning._

 _[_ _Camie Utsushimi_ _] w_

 _[_ _Momo Yaoyorozu_ _] Regardless, if you need any help, let us know. We may be unable to attend, but we can give advice if needed._

 _[_ _Shouto Todoroki_ _] Thank you._

 _[_ _Camie Utsushimi_ _] gnghgnghfdhfdhd I can't believe we're missing out on Todoroki's concert_

 _[_ _Camie Utsushimi_ _] Like, why_

 _[_ _Camie Utsushimi_ _] It's not faaaaiiiiirrr_

 _[_ _Shouto Todoroki_ _] I'm not performing, though. I'll be helping out with stage effects._

 _[_ _Camie Utsushimi_ _] We're still missing out on it T.T_

 _[_ _Momo Yaoyorozu_ _] There's nothing we can do about safety regulations. It's regrettable that we can't attend, but maybe we'll have better luck next year._

* * *

Hearing Yoarashi trying to sing was something he never wanted to witness again. Never. Ever. Again.

He'd gladly take Bakugou at the drums over that.

* * *

It was the morning of the culture festival. Todoroki was the first one up, as usual, sipping on some tea Yaoyorozu had given him. Somehow, it had gotten mixed up with the general possessions, and now a good amount of tea leaves had been used up by his classmates.

It kind of miffed him, but it was partially his own fault for leaving it unattended in the kitchen. Absentmindedly, he spun the container around in his fingers.

"Imperial Golden Tips." He read the name of the blend aloud. It was very befitting of Yaoyorozu, and according to Uraraka it was pretty fancy stuff. It was also surprisingly fragrant.

Remembering not to leave it lying around this time, he took his cup and the container and returned to his room.

* * *

Midoriya was late. All he had to do was buy a handful of items from the store, so what was taking him so long? Did he seriously manage to get into trouble or something?

No, surely he was just overthinking things…

* * *

"It was a simple trip to the store, and he still managed to get involved in some kind of trouble." Todoroki let out a long sigh, recalling the events from the day of the culture festival.

"That… does sound concerning." Yaoyorozu agreed. "But at least he's unharmed."

"I know they tried to cover something up, another PR stunt is the last thing we need. But I'm sure he was bleeding." He went on, leaning against the railing.

They were currently waiting for Utsushimi at the mall, but the girl in question was probably distracted by something again. Then again, she was always late.

"It's a bit disconcerting, isn't it? Imagine how many things must have been covered up so far, the incidents we know of aside."

"All Might's retirement really has changed a lot, hasn't it?" He leaned his head backwards, looking through the glass ceiling at the grey sky. "I wonder what else will change…"

"The League's activities haven't subsided either." Yaoyorozu added. "Criminal activity has reached a new high and they're pushing younger heroes further than ever. The government is pretty desperate right now."

"I know. The fact that we were allowed to take part in the supplementary lessons is proof enough of that."

"The billboard announcements are coming up soon. Your father will be officially taking over All Might's spot." Yaoyorozu leaned against the railing as well, mirroring his position. "We'll have to see where the future takes us."

"Yeah…"

"Hey guys, totes sorry I'm late, but there was this sick sale down the street and I just had to- why do both of you look so serious?" Utsushimi scrunched her eyebrows in confusion.

"We were just thinking about the future, but we can dwell on that another day. Let's grab something to eat." Yaoyorozu suggested.

"Yes, I'm starving!" The other girl rubbed her stomach. "And we need to tell Todoroki all about our festival, which he missed, which is also totally his loss because it was _awesome_."

"Our festival wasn't half-bad either." He defended his school.

"When you say it in such a lack-lustre way, I have a hard time believing you." Utsushimi shot back.

Yaoyorozu laughed, and things were okay again. For now, he should just focus on spending his limited free time with his friends.

* * *

It was like time stood still.

Like his heart forgot how to beat.

Like he forgot how to breathe.

His classmates were calling out his name. Aizawa was there too.

But that didn't matter. None of that mattered. Number One Hero? Greatest Man? None of that mattered.

It didn't matter, because that man was still his father. His father who was lying motionless on the ground on live television.

Was this is? Was this how things end?!

"You've gotta be kidding…"

" _-flames are still burning! Take a look! Don't you see?! Endeavour's still alive and fightning! Quit despairing over the last traces of a symbol that's no longer here! And Look at the man who's giving his all for us right now!"_

The man's voice shook Todoroki out of his thoughts. That's right, his father was still moving, still fighting. There was only one thing he could do, and that was…!

"Dad… I'm watching!"

* * *

Yaoyorozu and Utsushimi had said it before, hadn't they? That his father was not All Might, but somebody else. Another human being.

It never really sunk in, not until this moment.

Not until the sheer amount of relief washed over him when his father raised a fist in victory.

He thanked the gods, because his father was safe.

* * *

 **AN: Uff… with that we've caught up with ch 191! I could've gone on, but I feel like this is a good place to stop. I also apologize that this chapter is relatively short :/**

 **That brings me to the next point: this story is going on hiatus from now on. I have three interludes on stand-by (incl. Momo's birthday) to bridge over the time, but I'm going to assume it'll take a few months until I have enough material to write another chapter for this.**

 **In the mean-time, feel free to check out my other TodoMomo stories :3**

 **And, of course, reviews are appreciated :)**

 **~Emi**


	14. Interlude: Refraction

_**Interlude: Momo Yaoyorozu – "Refraction"**_

"A… sleepover?" Her mother's eyes narrowed just a fraction of a millimetre, but it was enough to send chills down her spine. "At your classmate's house?"

Momo suppressed the urge to fiddle with her fingers, not that it would directly help in this situation, but it would have still been better than having her hands hang by her side, unsure of what to do. She cleared her throat nervously. "Yes, Camie is having trouble keeping up with the curriculum and the supplementary lessons at the same time. As her friend and the vice-president of our class, I have certain duties…"

Her mother raised a brow sceptically. "Why can't she come here, like she did before? I'm sure we have better facilities to accommodate a sleepover…"

 _Because you would never approve of a party._ But Momo couldn't say that out loud. She had tried hinting towards it over the past few days, but the idea of a "rambunctious party" always put a grimace on her mother's face, and her father didn't look much more thrilled. They had held a formal event for her birthday like every year, but it just wasn't the same as what Camie had talked about…

As much as Momo valued her parents and their lifestyle, sometimes, just sometimes, she wanted to be a normal teenager too. And even if it was just this once, and even if it meant deceiving her mother for a bit, she wanted to experience this.

After trying to talk to her parents ended in failure, she, Camie and Todoroki had agreed on moving the party to Camie's house since she had the house to herself for the weekend.

All that was left was this final step. Convincing her mother it was just a normal sleepover.

"W-Well, with her most recent injury, it's better for her to stay in a familiar environment, and her parents don't want her travelling around too much for now…" It was a lie. A small one, but still a lie. Momo didn't consider herself a good liar.

Her mother brought a hand up to her chin. "Let me think about it…"

* * *

"That list looks a bit long." Todoroki commented as he watched Utsushimi unfurl a long strip of paper. "Are you sure we need so much?"

"You've never been at a sleepover with Yaomomo, have you? So, you don't know how much she can eat." She mumbled as she scanned the list for something in particular.

Todoroki wasn't sure what, after all Utsushimi had texted him this morning that she needed his help to carry all these things back to her house. He scanned the area, taking in the various stores he had never paid much attention to in the past, wondering exactly what this party was going to entail.

"Okay, let's see, first we'll go there, … then over there… oh shucks, then we'd have to come back over here, no, so maybe there first?" Utsushimi mumbled in the background, the rustle of her eternally long list accompanying her words.

After a few minutes, Todoroki plucked the list from her fingers and furrowed his brows. "You _do_ know we have a limited budget, right?"

"I know, but it's exactly for moment like these that you save up your precious allowance, though." She held up a finger and looked at him smugly, as if she had just managed to cure cancer.

It was true that they'd agreed to put a good portion of their allowances together, but unless then stock market crashed while he wasn't paying attention there was no way their budget would cover all this.

"We're still going to have to cross off half of this list."

Utsushimi sighed heavily. "…I know. Let a girl dream, 'kay?"

He did feel a bit bad for ruining her mood, but she jumped back to full vigour soon enough. "Okay, we're gonna prioritize foods and drinks. If you're craving something unhealthy, now is the time to speak up! Junk food, sweet drinks, parties are the best excuse to have mountains of those!"

"…if the budget allows it."

"Dude, stop pointing out real world problems!" She cleared her throat. "Now, back to planning. We should have a good amount of party deco, like balloons and confetti, and then we'll put the rest of the money into food, drinks and her gift."

The gift part was probably going to be the most difficult part, and they agreed on that. Yaoyorozu was a girl who could have everything she wanted to have. Hell, she probably already did have everything she wanted. So far they had agreed on something that had to do with literature, but it was shaping up to be a lot more difficult than intended.

He had even asked his mother for advice in a roundabout way, but she had merely said it'd need to be something 'from the heart'. What did that even mean?

":..let's focus on the things we are sure of first. Once that is out of the way, we can concentrate on finding her a gift." He suggested.

"Yeah, let's do th-" She swerved on her heel, pausing when her eyes fell on something in the distance. A grin spread on her lips. "Hey, Todoroki… there's a sale going on in that store over there."

Something about her sugary voice spelled doom for him.

* * *

He could always consider this training… somehow. He let out a muffled grunt when he finally got to set down the mountain of bags in his arms, his limbs sighing in relief along with him. It was a good thing Aizawa never considered making his students carry his groceries as a punishment.

Utsushimi was humming to herself as she dug through her incredibly small purse, eventually pulling out the keys to her front door. A few seconds later, the door swung open and she held it for him. "Come in, you can set the bags down in the kitchen."

He followed her vague motions to the room in question, setting their shopping on the fairly empty counter. After glancing around, he found that the entire kitchen was oddly clean and empty. "Do you not cook often?" He asked when Utsushimi appeared back in the doorway.

"Nah, not really." She muttered, looking to the side. She hadn't bothered removing her shoes yet, nervously tapping the tip of her right boot against the immaculate floor. "It just feels… weird to only cook for myself."

"I understand." He answered quickly, memories of lonely dinners nagging at the back of his mind. "Let's get going again, if you're ready."

A flicker of gratitude flashed across her eyes, followed by her usual grin. "Yeah, let's find Yaomomo a super-duper awesome gift!"

* * *

"This one, it just _has_ to be this one." Her fingers already reached out to take the object into her hands, before holding it up against the light dramatically. "Yes, this is the perfect gift."

He'd have agreed either way, so the whole spectacle was a bit unnecessary in his own humble opinion. Now he could only hope that none of the people staring at them as if they were crazy bothered remembering their faces.

Reaching up, he plucked the object from her grip and made a straight line for the cashier before Utsushimi felt the urge to live out more dramatics.

* * *

Momo gripped the handle of her overnight bag a bit tighter as she watched the blurred lines of the city rushing past her. Her mother had _somehow_ approved of the sleepover, and while the guilt still hacked at her heart, the growing seed of excitement within her was doing a good job of counter-balancing it.

Todoroki had applied for free time in advance, and as long as he returned to the dorms before midnight there wouldn't be any problems.

Camie's parents were absent, but she was determined to make sure nothing happened that could possibly make them worry.

* * *

"Well, due to a resource problem, our OG plan fell kinda flat, but never fear!" Camie flipped her golden hair over her shoulder, then stemmed both her hands on her hips. "I, the queen of improv, am here!"

Momo wasn't sure if that was supposed to be an All Might quote or not, but Camie seemed confident. Her proud pose and wide grin left little space to question her decision, and from the sound of it, Todoroki had approved of whatever new plan she had come up with. (His judgement could not always be trusted, but the faith she did have in him overruled that for now).

"Since when are you the queen of improvisation?" Todoroki questioned, seemingly confused _. So much for him approving of the mystery plan._

"Have you already forgotten?! Not cool, man." Camie puffed up her cheek. "You forgot about my _ingenious_ idea?! It was _perfect_."

He furrowed his brows in thought, grinding through his memories for a few seconds. "Ah, you mean _that._ "

"Well…, erm…" Momo interrupted them. "Is it… dangerous? The two of you can be… reckless at times." She chose her words carefully, eyes shifting between her two friends. "Like, what does it involve?"

"It involves you putting on your shoes and jacket. It's also the reason I told you not to wear a skirt today." Camie held up two fingers, shaping a "v" with them.

"We're going somewhere? But it's pretty late and dark outside…"

"Shhht, just listen to your totes fab coordinator Camie and do as she says." The bubbly blonde had been injected with new vigour and energy, pushing her towards the corridor already, Todoroki following right behind them.

"E-erm, okay…" Momo fumbled to catch her boots that her friend practically threw at her, putting them on shortly after. "So, can you at least tell me where we are going?" She directed the question towards Todoroki, who was more likely to answer her in this situation.

"The park."

"The… park? Wait, why do I have a bad feeling about this…"

"Don't worry about a single thing." Camie pushed a pair of boots into her arms. "We got this."

* * *

"I knew I had a bad feeling about this." Momo stared at the lake in front of them. "I feel like I know where this is going…"

"Giant waterslide for. The. Win." Camie folded her arms in a self-satisfied manner. "It had to be this late cuz of quirk regulations and yada yada, but now it's time for Todoroki to work his magic."

"Wait, Todoroki, please, you don't have to do th-"

"Yaoyorozu, you've never been to a playground before, have you?" He interrupted her. "We're technically still children, depending on how you see things. It's perfectly fine for us to do these kinds of things."

"… that sounds like something Camie would say as an excuse."

"Hey! It's perfectly reasonable!" Camie stuck out her tongue.

"That doesn't matter, does it?" A hint of a smile crossed his face. "We all had to grow up quickly, there's nothing wrong with being childish and making excuses every now and then, right?"

"Todoroki…"

"Water slide, water slide!"

He crouched down, touching the water surface with his right hand. She had seen it before, but there was a different atmosphere in the darkness of the night as the ice structure gradually grew into a giant slide.

"We _were_ gonna go to the pool at first, but it's kinda hard to explain the whole giant slide part, so I brilliantly came up with this solution instead." Camie gestured towards the slide with a proud grin. "We'll have to watch the time though, if we stay too long, we might get noticed..."

Momo did her best to push away the worry within her gut, flexing her wrists in an attempt to loosen up. Honestly, their idea could have been a lot more reckless and dangerous, so she was grateful for that much. They were doing this from the bottom of their hearts, for her, because they wanted to.

That sentiment alone was enough to cause a seed of happiness to bloom in her chest. "Thank you."

"You haven't even ridden it yet, you can't thank us yet! Time to test out Todoroki's slide!" Like a whirlwind of gold, Camie had already started pulling her towards the top of the construct. "Come on, Todoroki, you too!"

"I'll be right behind you." He confirmed.

The ease with which he agreed to every one of Camie's schemes was both touching and concerning, to be honest, but the rare smile he was sporting today made up for everything. Todoroki wasn't one for things like this, so seeing him loosen up a bit as well was… nice.

"Okay, time for some basic rules. One, as much as we'd all like to scream when riding down, it's late and we don't want to wake any of the neighbours, so all screaming will have to be done quietly. Two, having fun tonight is mandatory. Three, if it isn't fun enough, we blame Todoroki."

"Something's off about that third rule." Todoroki pointed out.

"It's your imagination." Camie said quickly, using the moment to push Momo down the slide. An unwanted yelp escaped her lips as gravity and the frictionless surface pulled her downwards at an unexpected speed, the wind rushing past her ears as she clammed her hands over her mouth.

Her feet touched solid ground way too soon, the exhilaration of the slide having just started growing on her as it came to an end.

Camie came soon afterwards, whispering "Whooooohooo!" as she stretched her arms upwards. Momo sputtered laughter at the ridiculous sight, but it came out as an odd mix out of coughs and wheezes.

"So, what do you think?" Camie was still sitting on the end of the slide, smiling up at her. "It's totes fun, isn't it?"

"It is." Momo cleared her throat, letting the giddiness get to her. "I… I really want to go again…"

"Perfect, we have plenty of time for another two or three rounds!"

Just as she was about to be dragged away once again (how many times had it already been today?) she glanced back. "Wait, what about Todoroki?"

"He's keeping an eye out for by-passers." Camie explained, giving her a thumbs-up. "If somebody comes, he'll just melt all of this in the blink of an eye. Smart, right?"

"Camie, are you telling me you came up with a back-up plan?" Momo gasped. "I'm… I'm so proud of you!"

"Heh, I have my moments."

* * *

"Mayday!" Camie whisper-shouted. "Mayday! Man overboard! No, wait, not overboard, but – ugh, there's a person coming our way!"

Todoroki reacted almost immediately, pushing both of them down. "You might get a bit wet." He added as a hasty warning, joining them a few seconds later. Momo glanced upwards, watching the slide dissolve behind him under the flicker of his flames. He gritted his teeth suddenly. "We're at a height where we can jump into the lake, jump now!"

Momo felt herself being hauled over the side of the slide, meeting the cold lake water sooner than expected. She resurfaced with a gasp, coughing as her lungs filled themselves back with oxygen. Camie was next to her, mirroring her actions.

"Stay low." Todoroki whispered from her other side. When she glanced around, she realized that the slide had disappeared completely, the rise of the water level the only trace it had ever been there.

A speck of light passed the lake, probably a guard with a flashlight, and all three of them made sure to remain as silent as possible until he passed.

"I think the coast is clear now." Camie spoke up after a few more minutes. Todoroki nodded in agreement.

"You know…" Todoroki began again after they climbed out of the water. "Somehow, us going out like this always ends with at least two of us drenched in water. It's like… a curse."

Camie was practically cackling at this point, clutching her stomach as she rolled from side to side, short wheezes sneaking between her laughter whenever her breath fell short. "A… a curse! It has to be!"

"I'm serious, Utsushimi."

Momo could only stare at her actions in awe. They had used a quirk without permission, and had ended up soaked in lake water as a result of it. The chilly breeze really wasn't helping, but she found herself joining Camie's laughter anyway. It was almost infectious in a way.

Even Todoroki dropped his stern expression in favour of a more relaxed smile, his quiet chuckle joining in, and the three of them just… laughed.

Life could be strange sometimes. A good kind of strange. As Momo's abdomen started hurting, she had to force herself to calm down, and even with her blood still pumping in her veins as if she had just fought a hard battle, the smile stretched across her lips never died down.

Her life had been refracted, like a beam of light exiting water for the first time, and she couldn't wait to see where else her future with these two would take her.

* * *

"By the way, we got an awesome gift." Camie grinned at her, towel wrapped around her hair. "Todoroki helped me pick it out, well, actually, it was kinda his idea…"

"You really didn't have to get me anything… I appreciate it, I really do." Momo clutched her hands together, a small sliver of excitement building up in her. Unfortunately, Todoroki had already returned to his dorms, but she would make sure to thank him as soon as possible.

"Tada!" Her remaining friend whipped out a small, long envelope. "Open it! I wanna see your reaction to it!"

Slowly, Momo took the item, opening it carefully. There was something thin, but firm, inside, and she slid it out with ease. "A… bookmark?"

"Yeah, isn't it pretty? I picked this one out for you!" Camie leaned over, putting her chin on her shoulder. "We thought about getting you a book, but we weren't sure which one to get."

Momo held up the bookmark against the light. It was translucent, with a small array of painted flowers at it's centre. "It's… beautiful. Thank you… Thank you so much…"

"Omg, Yaomomo, are you crying?"

"I'm just so happy. Everything the two of you did for me today, I'm so grateful…"

"Oh Yaomomo, you're so cute." Camie wrapped her arms around her in a tight, secure hug. "We're your friends, anything less would be a joke."

* * *

 **AN: wow, it's been quite some time hasn't it? Well, here's another interlude :))**

 **I'll be honest, I haven't read the past seven or eight chapters of bnha yet, but I've heard that there's a timeskip and that Todo and Baku pass their license exams, which basc means that I have** _ **a lot**_ **of space to let my imagination run in regards to the supplementary courses (lowkey sad about the lack of Camie content tho)**

 **I'm still dealing with uni and exams at the moment, so I can't promise anything, but I can say that the next chapter will be mostly bridging over the winter months in order to catch up again, or maybe another interlude (I have a few super short/drabble-like ones that I'm keeping on standby), but rest assured I'll get around to it when inspiration strikes :muscle:**


End file.
